


They Say Three's A Crowd (But Whoever Said That Was An Idiot)

by Lunar_Revolver



Category: One Piece
Genre: A little more literal than one would expect, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Devil Fruit Sabo, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Bonding, Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-13
Updated: 2019-11-02
Packaged: 2019-11-16 10:38:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 21,989
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18092732
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lunar_Revolver/pseuds/Lunar_Revolver
Summary: Sabo had never really planned on eating a Devil Fruit. Hadn’t even thought it existed beyond rumors and stories he heard among his time in the Gray Terminal, or from the thugs that passed between it and Edge Town.But then he ended up with one (though he didn’t realize it at the time).Then one thing led to another, and now he was…Well, he wasn’t even sure what he was now. But he was getting ahead himself.In which Sabo ends up eating a devil fruit of his own, and it make all the difference.





	1. Accidental Devilry

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Switching It Up](https://archiveofourown.org/works/17469179) by [Bedlamwolf](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bedlamwolf/pseuds/Bedlamwolf). 



> Heyo! So the idea for it fic was heavily inspired by Bedlamwolf's Switching It Up, and since they said that we're open to expand on it as we wished, I couldn't help but have a crack at it! 
> 
> Honestly this chapter got a lot longer than planned, and I'm not sure if all my chapters will be of this length, but hey, we'll see won't we?
> 
> Enjoy!

Sabo had never really planned on eating a Devil Fruit. Hadn’t even thought it existed beyond rumors and stories he heard among his time in the Gray Terminal, or from the thugs that passed between it and Edge Town.   
  
But then he ended up with one (though he didn’t realize it at the time).   
  
Then one thing led to another, and now he was…   
  
Well, he wasn’t even sure what he was now. But he was getting ahead himself.   
  
It had started out like any other day, with most of the morning spent scoping out Gray Terminal for some ‘jobs’ he could do.   
  
He wove in the shadows of the trash mounds, familiar with the maze of garbage that seemed to grow larger and larger day by day, as he kept an ear out for some promising prospects.   
  
Eventually, he managed to overhear some thugs who were talking about some huge score they got from the city, hands holding tightly around the worn wool sack that was just ripe for the taking when Sabo peered around the broken panel of withering wood.   
  
Sabo smiled to himself as he trailed behind them silently, hand gripping his trusty pipe as he adjusted his hat and waited for the opportunity to strike.   
  
Then it was mostly a matter of jumping on them while they were still unaware, falling as a whirlwind of kicks and strikes from his weapon to knock them on their asses before grabbing his quarry and did the usual run-around through the hills of junk to make sure he wasn’t being followed to the usual meet up place.   
  
Now all he had to do was wait for his partner-in-crime to arrive.   
  
Giving one last glance around him for good measure, Sabo began his way up their tree, gripping onto his loot as he slung it over his shoulder.   
  
His hand and feet found the familiar and worn holds on the trunk that they had climbed over the years, pulling himself up to sit on the branch that held the secret compartment they hollowed out to hide their precious pirate fund when they started to work together all those years ago.   
  
Ace should arrive any time now, he thought absently, taking the moment to just have a breather. Especially now that he was kind of away from the stench of the Gray Terminal. Though there was still a faint lingering smell of rot and despair since Middle Forest was still pretty close to it.   
  
Sabo brushed his thumb over the metal pipe still in his grasp, taking comfort in its familiar weight in his hand.   
  
He wondered where Ace was now. Hopefully, his friend wasn’t in trouble again. But even then, Ace can certainly take care of himself well enough. Nothing and no one could stand up to them as a challenge, even when alone and separated.   
  
So Sabo simply sighed, because knowing the other boy’s monstrous strength and fighting skill, he was probably okay.   
  
Ace was just late again like he tended to be recently.   
  
It was mostly caused by Ace’s grandfather, Garp, who had dropped a new bundle of trouble on the bandits that Ace lived. Which the boy wasn’t happy about. At all.   
  
At least, if there’s anything to take away from the boy’s complaints about the whole situation to him whenever the topic comes up the past few months, it was that the kid, Luffy, was annoying and perplexing and probably had no sense of self-preservation (well, now that last part sounded familiar).   
  
Ace griped about how the little idiot just kept running after him no matter what he did to lose him, ranging from having a tree crush him, to throwing him down a ravine, then down a nest of crocodiles, and so on and so forth. Sabo even offered him some ideas, mostly just to see if it worked. Though so far despite Ace’s efforts, Luffy was still alive and kicking and running after him every day.   
  
(And sometimes Sabo could tell that there was something odd in the way Ace talked about Luffy sometimes, like there was a kind of growing begrudging fondness underneath the annoyance and frustration, but he didn’t dare voice it.)   
  
Eventually, Sabo tried to convince Ace that maybe it was better if they lived together in Middle Forest to just save time for him every morning. It was an idea they played around with earlier on even before the kid arrived. They would get a lot more done, and besides, it’ll be a lot safer too since they can watch out for each other.   
  
But just like before, Ace continued to insist on staying with the bandits and going through the mountain path as he did every day; using the long detour from Mt. Corvo to the Gray Terminal to train. Losing Luffy was just an additional hurdle for him to overcome. And that was that.   
  
Still, Sabo kind of felt bad for the younger boy. Though honestly, he was wondering how he was even alive at this point. Better yet, just what was pushing Luffy to keep going after Ace when it was clear that the boy wanted nothing to do with him.   
  
Maybe he was just determined.   
  
Or stubborn (and Sabo laughed at the thought because it was hilarious that Ace finally found his match in that aspect).   
  
Or maybe…maybe he was just lonely.   
  
Sabo shook his head.   
  
Nope. Not his problem.   
  
Sabo sighed, shifting to make himself more comfortable on the tree branch.   
  
His blue eyes slid to the sack sitting in front of him. Well, might as well count his pull for the day and add it to their fund, to keep it away from any prying eyes. Wouldn’t want anyone to find their hard-won money.   
  
Seems like Ace was taking his sweet time today anyway.   
  
Sabo untied the worn bag. The dappled sunlight slipped through the canopy, making the gold and other precious items glint as he began to mentally appraise them before dumping them with the rest of their treasure. Pausing sometimes to bite down on some coins.   
  
It was a habit he picked up after he remembered seeing some of the merchants do it at the docks and the market in the Goa Kingdom, though to be honest, he didn’t know why they did it.   
  
Maybe they were checking how hard the gold is to make sure it was authentic?   
  
Probably.   
  
Eventually, he finished sorting through and emptying the bag’s contents, grinning proudly to himself as he nodded with content.   
  
He’d definitely have Ace beat this time.   
  
Though just as he was about to close up the bag again, he noticed that there was still something sitting at the bottom. He reached for it, noting how it felt like it had swirled grooves on it as his fingers traced the surface. For a moment, the texture keenly reminded him of a fruit's, but that’s can’t be right.   
  
It’s probably a vase of some sort. Or maybe something like a perfume bottle.   
  
Pulling it out, he looked at the item in question.   
  
Well it definitely…uh, it definitely looked like fruit. Though it didn’t look like any kind that he’s seen before. Even the exotic fruits that were served as dessert at his old home never looked anything like this.   
  
Sabo sniffed it.   
  
And it definitely smells like one, given the faint, freshly sweet scent.   
  
Maybe it was valuable? Or maybe the guys from earlier just hid some fresh fruit they managed to swipe while they were in the city and stashed it in the knapsack to eat later, which was the more likely reason.   
  
After all, it was rare to come upon anything remotely fresh in the Gray Terminal. Most food scraps that anyone came across would have been rotten, or just straight up inedible. And any kind of fresh fruit or vegetables that anyone could possibly scavenge were available in the forests around Mt. Corvo.   
  
And no one was stupid enough to brave the wilderness, nor the bandits that stalked the area for people to steal from. And barely anyone had enough money to buy it in the city markets.   
  
Part of Sabo kind of felt a little guilty, but shrugged it off.   
  
Well, he had it now, and he was feeling a little peckish anyway. Might as well make sure it didn’t go to waste.   
  
He took a bite…and immediately regretted it, his face twisting to disgust.   
  
Shit. It tasted horrible! Yet even then he couldn’t get himself to spit it out like something was stopping him from doing so.   
  
So instead, he forced himself to chew and swallow it, sticking out his tongue as he shuddered.   
  
Was it rotten or something?   
  
He pulled it away from his face, glaring at it critically, but there weren’t any bruises or even any kind of unusual softness on the surface that told of rot, and it certainly didn’t smell like the usual strong sweet scent fruits tended to give out when they were off.   
  
Maybe it was just how it actually tasted?   
  
What was it again that people said? An acquired taste?   
  
Sabo glared at it.   
  
Well…it certainly wasn’t the worst thing he’s eaten ever since he started living in the Gray Terminal. And it would be a shame to waste a perfectly fresh piece of fruit. Some books he read did say that it was best to live with a balanced diet after all, and he can’t remember the last time he’s had any fruit.   
  
So with a sigh, he kept eating.   
  
At least, the next bite wasn’t as bad as the first and eventually, he worked his way to finishing the whole thing.   
  
Sabo shuddered again, the horrible taste lingering on his tongue. Yeah, he was not gonna repeat that again.   
  
He glanced below him. Still no sign of Ace.   
  
If he wasn’t coming any time soon, Sabo might as well find a nearby stream to help wash the flavor down.   
  
He grabbed the bag, closing the mossy door of the secret compartment with his foot as he reached for his pipe, ready to head down. But something stopped him. A sensation in his hands, as he paused in mid-motion of standing up. Almost like it was buzzing. Kind of like pins and needles, but without the pain of feeling it prickling underneath his skin.   
  
His mind immediately dashed to the possibility that the fruit had actually been poisonous, and the effects of it on his body was finally kicking in. How stupid could he have been to just—!   
  
Yet, before his thought careened to a full panic, something else pulled at his mind.   
  
Sabo stared at the items in his hands, the old rucksack and his pipe respectively, and he plopped back down the branch as he tilted his head to the side in confusion.   
  
He felt an urge niggling at the back of his mind. Something restless. Like the bubbling anticipation that bunched up in his chest when he was about to jump into a fight. Energy that felt like it needed to go somewhere.   
  
It got stronger when he moved his hands closer together, tingling from the tips of his fingers to up his arms when they were near touching, swearing that the items in question began to glow (but that’s couldn’t be right— it’s probably a trick of the light, right?).   
  
It became fainter when he pulled them apart (the light seemed to fade as well).   
  
Sabo’s brow creased as he laid the items down, and did the same motions with his now free hands, though finding that it didn’t cause the same sensations.   
  
Huh.   
  
“Sabo!”   
  
The boy in question felt his heart jerking against his chest as he grabbed for his pipe. He blinked hard a few times, shaking off his trance as he looked down to where the familiar voice called him from the forest floor.   
  
“Oi, Sabo! Are you there?”   
  
“Uh, yeah,” Sabo called back distractedly, peering down to the other boy. “Hey, Ace.”   
  
Ace seemed to notice his seemingly lackluster response, but eventually grinned as a way of an apology. “Sorry, I’m late.”   
  
“Yeah, you are late! I already finished a job in town!” Sabo grinned back, brightening up as they eased into the familiar banter they slipped into as they caught up for the day.   
  
Sabo was grateful for the normalcy of it as he decided to shove the odd feelings and urges before to the back of his mind, shaking his hands absently as if he was flicking away water that clung to his skin.   
  
He’ll deal with it later.   
  
“Great!” Ace shot back, a proud smile on his face, hefting up the sack in his hand to show him his accomplishment for the day. “So did I!”   
  
In the end, Ace’s pull had amounted more than Sabo’s, though he wasn’t too disappointed about it and he laughed as he claimed Ace the winner yet again.   
  
“Who cares? We’re saving up to be pirates together someday,” Ace said, having seated himself at the edge of the branch, leaning over as he watched Sabo count the rest of the money before adding it to the rest of their treasure. “We’ve been at this for five years now. It’s been pretty tough.”   
  
Ace shared a meaningful look with Sabo, and the other boy couldn’t help but think back to some of the scrapes that took the saying ‘blood, sweat and tears’ a little too literally.   
  
The ones where they ended up biting off more than they could chew. When they didn’t realize that the punks they targeted at the time had back-up just within earshot.   
  
Times where Sabo became painfully aware of his friend’s admiring yet frustrating trait of not running from a fight. Even when the odds were against them.   
  
Because Ace was stupid and extremely stubborn, and maybe Sabo was even more so for refusing to turn his back on him, even if his friend was being an idiot with a death wish because escaping was a totally valid strategy and there was no shame to run and just fight another day.   
  
But still, they fought anyway.   
  
And still, they won anyway.   
  
Because no matter what kind of situation they end up falling into, as long as they had one another’s back, they’ll always be able to figure out a way to win.   
  
(And maybe it was Ace’s way of thanking Sabo by letting him complain and chew him out afterwards, over forming bruises and bandaged cuts once they were under the safety of Middle Forest’s canopy.)   
  
They grinned at each other.   
  
“A pirate ship?! You guys want to be pirates? Me too! Let’s be friends!”   
  
And their faces fell as they saw a small lone figure waving to them excitedly on the forest floor.   
  
It was a kid.   
  
A kid still smiling with a wide toothy smile as Sabo quickly slammed the compartment shut, and he and Ace climbed down quicker than either of them have ever done.   
  
Because someone knew of their plan, and most importantly, knows of their secret pirate fund.   
  
Ace and Sabo immediately jumped on him, tying the kid up to the tree’s base tightly.   
  
Surprisingly, he didn’t put up much of a fuss or even fought back, simply continuing on grinning and laughing and asking them to be his friends all the while.   
  
Sabo had to admit he was kind of annoying. And he had already put all the pieces together on who the mystery kid was before Ace even introduced him as Luffy.   
  
He didn’t waste the chance to remind Ace that this would have been avoided if the other boy just went to live with him.   
  
All the pitying feelings Sabo had towards Luffy before quickly dissipated at the fear of the boy blabbing out their secret to other people, and Ace voiced his similar thoughts of it too.   
  
By how much the kid seemed to be so open and trusting, still with such a bright and wide smile plastered on his face as he looked happily between Sabo and Ace; it was only a matter of time before news of their hidden money reached the ears of those who wouldn’t hesitate to steal every single thing of worth the two boys managed to amass over the years, as they worked together towards their shared dream.   
  
And neither of the boys wanted to lose their treasure, nor end up having to start from scratch again all because a kid didn’t know when to shut his mouth.   
  
Which meant that there was only one thing to do.   
  
Though part of Sabo felt bad for needing to do it, especially when the reality of the situation hadn’t dawned on Luffy yet, uncaring for the insult that was thrown at him throughout the older boys’ discussion and just the general situation of him being tied up on a tree. Did he even know he was in danger?   
  
But they needed to do it because nothing was going to get in their way of becoming pirates and living free on the ocean. And they would do anything to make sure that dream came true.   
  
“We gotta kill him.”   
  
“Yeah.”   
  
And of course, that’s when it all sunk in for Luffy, as he immediately started screaming his head off for help.   
  
And of course Ace decided to lump the responsibility of actually killing the brat to Sabo, even if he never killed anyone before, and damn it just because Ace hadn’t killed anyone either doesn’t mean that he can just shuck off the responsibility to him!   
  
And of course someone actually hears Luffy’s desperate cries, or maybe it was them arguing at each other, or maybe both.   
  
Thankfully, the whole crisis was only barely avoided when they managed to get Luffy out of the ropes, and into the safety of the bushes that they managed to dive into.   
  
Just in time too, as a large man with a sword, that definitely looked real and sharp and deadly (there was only one person Sabo could think of to have that around the Gray Terminal), stepped into the clearing right after, surrounded by heavily bandaged men that swore that Ace was the one that stole from them earlier.   
  
Shit. Shit. Shit.   
  
Of course. Just their luck. Ace stole from the guys who actually worked for Porchemy, who of course worked for Bluejam. An actual pirate.   
  
And Ace swore, trying to keep his voice down as he realized his mistake as well.   
  
The two of them might want to be pirates, and they could definitely hold their own against the usual city thugs in Edge Town, but even they had to draw the line at the pirates who ruled the nearby cove. Because even Ace and Sabo knew they weren’t strong enough to actually fight against them, and even if they were, it just wasn’t worth the risk of drawing their wrath.   
  
Besides, Porchemy had the tendency of actually scalping the people that he defeats, and Sabo didn’t want to end up losing and finding it out for himself if that rumor was true.   
  
How did things go so wrong?   
  
First Luffy had to show up—   
  
“Wait, where did he go?” Sabo mumbled, glancing at his left where they ended up dragging the kid to only to find him missing.   
  
As if on cue, a shrill voice cried out in the clearing in front of them. Because of course, of course, of course, the little idiot just had to somehow get himself caught, and of course he just had to call out Ace’s name for help.   
  
If he wasn’t so terrified and angry, Sabo might have face-palmed, because Porchemy realized that the runt knew Ace, and that means that the pirate could use that.   
  
Which meant it was only a matter of time until they find out where their treasure was—!   
  
“Do you know where he is?” Porchemy asked, holding Luffy by the front of his shirt, the boy kicking the air uselessly as they looked at each other face to face.   
  
“That idiot better not talk!” Ace growled out through clenched teeth. Sabo’s grip tightened around his pipe in response.   
  
Luffy looked at Porchemy for a couple of beats, not caring that the man was big enough to crush him in his grasp nor that he was being held up by his shirt and high up above the ground.   
  
Eventually, Luffy looked away, pursing his lips as he answered with a shaky “N-nope~!”   
  
A moment of shock came over everyone, and whether it was from the unexpectedness of the lie from the boy, or the extremely obvious tell that he was actually lying to the pirate’s face, Sabo didn’t know.   
  
Instead, the pirate just ended up chuckling something low and foreboding before turning to take Luffy away, promising that he’ll help the little boy remember, laughing all the while with his goons stalked closely around his heels, glancing at the greenery around them for any sign of Sabo and Ace, just in case the two of them leapt out from the shadows to attack them.   
  
But neither of them moved. Not until their forms meshed in the shadows of the forest. Not until their voices faded away. Then Sabo and Ace only nodded to each other in confirmation before quickly leaping into action.   
  
Porchemy was bound to find out where they hid their treasure soon. Even if Luffy had (unexpectedly) kept his mouth shut, he wouldn’t keep his silence for long. Especially with what kind of cruelty and torture the pirate wasn’t afraid to dish out to get what he wanted. Because the Bluejam pirates didn’t care who you were. Whether you were a man, woman, or even a child, once you crossed them, you were as good as dead. Everyone in the Gray Terminal knew that.   
  
The two of them dashed through the underbrush, alert, aware and ready for anyone and anything that would enter the clearing and see them with the boxes of gold, jewelery, cash and whatever else they felt was valuable enough to steal over the years.   
  
Because even if they don’t want to let their treasure go without a fight, they’ll be against pirates and there won’t be telling what would happen if they really end up fighting with them, or even if they should. But they worked too hard on this damn it, and it was better to take as much as they can and work from there rather than lose everything and build everything back up from scratch.   
  
But eventually, fear ebbed away to wariness.   
  
Then to confusion.   
  
The sun was making its way lower on the sky, and there was still no sign of Porchemy, or even any of the other Bluejam pirates stalking through the forest in search of their stolen goods.   
  
Something was wrong, and looking at Ace, he knew he wasn’t alone in thinking so.   
  
Porchemy should have arrived by now.   
  
Luffy wouldn’t have — shouldn’t have been able to hold out from what Porchemy was doing to him.   
  
So how come they hadn’t come back yet?   
  
A stone settled in Sabo’s gut, weighing him down at each trip, at each step.   
  
Concern, guilt and curiosity mixed to some twisted amalgamation that nipped at Sabo’s heels and thoughts, before he eventually stopped at the base of the tree, looking through the bushes as if half-expecting for the giant form of Porchemy crashing through the underbrush towards them, after Luffy finally broke and—   
  
Sabo gritted his teeth.   
  
There was only a couple of boxes left, and Ace could make the final trip and secure everything in the fund’s new hiding spot on his own.   
  
“Ace,” Sabo said, catching the other boy’s attention as he hefted up the last three boxes in his arms. “You go finish up. I need to check up on something.”   
  
Ace looked at him grimly and nodded. Didn’t tell him to be careful because he didn’t need to, and the two of them headed off their separate ways, with Sabo making a beeline to the Gray Terminal.   
  
Sabo adjusted to sneaking through the trash heaps, silent and unassuming as a shadow as he darted between the familiar nooks and crannies that only he and Ace could possibly slip into, easily avoiding drawing attention to himself as he kept an ear out for anything about Porchemy or any of the other Bluejam pirates that would have been looking for them.   
  
And they were definitely still looking for them.   
  
The goons that were with Porchemy earlier were asking the residents of the Gray Terminal if they had seen Ace and Sabo, unaware at first that they were gradually being surrounded by them, as Sabo quickly ducked behind a junk pile.   
  
The residents only laughed at the pirates for wanting to look for the notorious demons of the trash heap. They knew how strong the little brats were and told the pirates not to bother. All the while, still slowly creeping closer to enclose them.   
  
The pirates seemed to realize what was happening after one of the residents pulled out a rusted and cruel looking knife on them and demanded them to leave anything valuable.   
  
The pirates quickly darted off the gap behind them and away from the shabby and grimy figures before they were cornered completely.   
  
The people seemed to be a little disappointed, and the crowd eventually dispersed.   
  
Wait, what.   
  
That can’t be right. Because if the pirates were still clueless where he and Ace was, that meant that…that meant that Porchemy still didn’t know anything about where they were and where their treasure was.   
  
Which meant that—   
  
“I feel so sorry for that kid…”   
  
Sabo paused, looking over to one of the people that plopped himself onto an old and weathered barrel that miraculously held his weight. His other arm clutched a worn stuffed toy, pressing it against his chest as he frowned.   
  
“Well, if you feel so bad about it, why don’t you go in there and stop it?”   
  
“Hey, I can sympathize without wanting to stick my neck out, okay? He’s just…so young, and he’s been screaming for help for hours too.”   
  
“So what? Goa won’t care about some snot-nosed brat being tortured by some pirates. Bluejam and his crew pay tribute to the nobles after all, so that means no matter what they do no one’s going to bat an eye. Even then, the laws of Goa don’t extend here. There’s nothing anyone can do. That’s just how things are.”   
  
“I know! I just…I just wish there was something that could be done! It’s just not right.”   
  
“…you and me both. At least he’ll be out of his misery soon enough.”   
  
Sabo felt ice fill his veins, the horrifying reality dawning on him.   
  
But he didn’t have time to stand around gawking, because damn it, the kid might have been an annoying, goofy idiot, but he was actually still keeping their treasure a secret from Porchemy for hours now. Enduring whatever kind of pain and torture that the pirate was doing to him and…   
  
Luffy was running out of time.   
  
And Sabo only hoped they weren’t too late.   
  
.   
  
..   
  
...   
  
..   
  
.   
  
They barely made it.   
  
Just barely, but somehow, miraculously, they managed to arrive before Porchemy realized that it was useless to get Luffy to talk and decided to shut him up permanently. With a sword. Aimed at his neck.   
  
Both Ace and Sabo screamed at him to stop as they crashed through the decrepit shack, a shower wood and splinters cascading around them as Luffy cried out hoarsely in relief at their sudden appearance.   
  
As usual, Ace rushed ahead. Aiming for the main guy off the bat, brandishing his pipe as he readied to swing, but then Porchemy just caught him by his head with ease and a hand; thanking Ace for saving him the trouble of coming to them instead of him looking for them with Luffy having been so uncooperative.   
  
Luckily, the bastard didn’t notice Sabo. Who struck him from behind on cue when Ace called for his name.   
  
Porchemy’s grip loosened around Ace’s head, and the boy managed to maneuver around in midair to land on his feet safely.   
  
Then it was only a matter of Sabo taking advantage of the chaos and surprise from the punks around them, nabbing the knife from one of them while they were shocked to see someone, especially kids that barely stood up to their thighs, stand up to their boss.   
  
(Sabo ignored the way his hands tingled again as he held the knife in one hand and his pipe in the other, because he swore he’ll deal with it later. So he’ll deal with it later damn it.)   
  
With another leap and a carefully aimed slice, he managed to cut Luffy free from the rafters, letting go of the knife in favor of catching the bloodied boy as gravity did its work, and they landed roughly on the dirt floor.   
  
Now all they had to do was rush out of there, loop around Gray Terminal for a little bit, before running back to the relative safety of the forest.   
  
But then Ace decided that he wasn’t keen on that particular plan because—   
  
“Once I face off against an enemy, I never run away!”   
  
Of course. Why was Sabo even surprised?   
  
Because damn it, this was only supposed to be a quick rescue operation. But no, Ace just had to make it more complicated by throwing caution to the wind and actually deciding that it was a splendid time to fight against a real pirate.   
  
One with a real sword. One who liked to scalp the people he defeats while they’re still alive. And Sabo was not interested in being part of that demographic, nor did he want to see Ace join them either.   
  
Because Porchemy isn’t like the other thugs in town.   
  
And Sabo quickly (harshly) reminded Ace of that fact, but it was already a lost cause.   
  
Sabo knew the way that Ace squared his shoulders, gripping his weapon like it was a sword itself and not a slightly rusted piece of metal that they picked up somewhere in the trash dump one day.   
  
He wasn’t going to budge from this fight.   
  
And damn it all, Sabo wasn’t going to leave him behind.   
  
If they survive this, Sabo’s going to beat Ace to death with the bastard’s own weapon.   
  
.   
  
..   
  
...   
  
..   
  
.   
  
Sabo’s not really surprised at this point. He’s gotten used to just rolling with their victories; managing to come up on top no matter what kind of impossible odds that Ace’s stupid habit of refusing to retreat lands them in.   
  
They’re alive. And really, that’s all that matters at this point.   
  
Honestly, the most surprising thing at the moment was that Luffy was actually still…well, he was still alive.   
  
Sabo had seen the discarded spiked gloves in the corner of the pirate’s hut. He had landed not too far from it when was busy being flung away by Porchemy, the cruel maroon sheen on the spikes caught the slivers of the sunset’s dying light.   
  
(Sabo knew it was originally black. He tried not to think how much the man struck Luffy in those hours the other boy spent in their mercy. Tried not to think how much blood the other boy lost to dye it that color.)   
  
And despite spending the whole time crying out tangled, garbled words of what were likely him expressing relief and thanks towards the other boys, Luffy had been compliant and let Sabo wrap his wounds and bruises with the bandages that he and Ace kept hidden in another compartment at a clearing, deep in Middle Forest at the boundary where it’s tree line met with the wild woods of Mt. Corvo.   
  
(Maybe it was the guilt that was giving Sabo that patience. That was making him ignore the soreness of his own body, the pain that prickled all over him like the wounds that littered his skin from the fight, and instead focused solely on treating Luffy’s injuries first.   
  
Because Luffy had nearly died. Keeping their secret from people that had no mercy to children, even if he had no reason to.   
  
Even if Sabo and Ace didn’t treat him with any kindness.   
  
Even when his rescue wasn’t guaranteed.)   
  
Ace tended to his own wounds in the meantime, his eyes glued on the task at hand as he sat opposite them at the edge of the clearing.   
  
He had a scowl on his face like he usually did when he was stewing hard about something, and Sabo kept stealing worried glances at him, unsure what the other boy was thinking or feeling.   
  
He was always a difficult read when he was like that.   
  
But for now, Sabo focused on Luffy, and eventually sorted him out, leaving him to his snot and tears and warbled words on the crest of the clearing while he crossed to where Ace was finishing up as well.   
  
It was quiet, aside from the continued sobbing of Luffy and the faint patting of metal against the ground as Ace took another roll of bandages and tried to bind his broken pipe together.   
  
The relative silence pressed against the two of them, as Sabo thought back to Ace’s back facing him as they tried to retreat. The cruel gleam of the blade in Porchemy’s hand, as he loomed over his friend.   
  
He gritted his teeth.   
  
“You got a real bad habit, Ace,” Sabo finally forced out, after he finished with his own injuries. “How can you not run away when you’re up against a real pirate? Why do you have such a death wish?!”   
  
Because they really could have died that time.   
  
Because the man had a real sword that had sliced through both their pipes like butter when they tried to block. And Sabo tried not to think what would have happened if their bodies were caught in its swing instead.   
  
They had won, yeah.   
  
But barely.   
  
Just barely.   
  
“Anyway after this, Bluejam’s whole crew are gonna want revenge! We’ll be hunted forever!”   
  
But Ace said nothing to that still, and Sabo huffed heatedly with his arms crossed, watching as the other boy patted his weapon experimentally against his palm and frowned at how it felt in his hand. Sabo glanced at it own pipe which he had tried to repair that same way as well.   
  
They’ll have to find new ones to replace them.   
  
“I was so scared!” Luffy’s first string of coherency as he blubbered it out through fat tears and mucus, and Ace’s hands gripped his pipe tighter. “I thought I was gonna die!”   
  
“God! Shut up!” Ace yelled at him, slamming his fist on the ground as he snarled. “How long are you going to keep crying?! I hate cowards and crybabies! It’s annoying!”   
  
Sabo opened his mouth to tell Ace off, but before he did, Luffy caught them off guard as he clamped his mouth shut suddenly. His previously shuddering form stilled, and eyes glared at Ace as his tears stopped.   
  
For a moment they expected him to be angry at them. For leaving him to the pirates. For nearly letting him be killed. For being angry at him for just being relieved to be alive.   
  
Instead, he took them by surprise again as he bowed.   
  
“Thank you,” Luffy’s voice wobbled. “Tha-thank you for saving me.”   
  
It only seemed to fuel Ace’s anger, and Sabo pulled him back from his outrage before his friend charged at the younger boy for simply having the courtesy thanking them.   
  
But (surprisingly) that wasn’t what was the source of Ace’s rage.   
  
“Why didn’t you just tell them?! You know those guys kill women and children without a second thought, right? So why didn’t you just tell them about our treasure?!”   
  
And Sabo pulled his arm back as Ace settled back, turning instead to Luffy as he crossed his arms again.   
  
It was a fair question and one that had been on his mind as well. Because anyone with half a brain would have sold them out to save their own skin, especially after hearing that the two of them had planned on killing him to keep it a secret.   
  
But Luffy didn’t care about that. He simply said to that was if he told on them, then that meant that he couldn’t be their friend anymore, as if that was a totally valid reason for nearly getting himself killed.   
  
“So what?! It’s better than dying, isn’t it? Why do you want to be friends with me so bad anyway?! Don’t you remember what I did to you?!”   
  
“Because I have nobody else!” Luffy yelled back, and both boys flinched back from his fierce expression. “I can’t go back to Windmill Village. And I hate bandits! If can’t follow you, then I’ll be all alone. I don’t want to be alone! I hate it more than being hurt!”   
  
Sabo felt his jaw clench, the words stirring something in his chest.   
  
He looked away.   
  
He expected the boy to be angry, but his voice wasn’t accusing at all. And Sabo felt the guilt from earlier rushing back like a flood as the words echoed around his head, thinking to all the times that Ace complained about the boy that chased after him relentlessly, the one who kept begging to be friends with him no matter what Ace had ended up doing to him.   
  
After all, loneliness can make people do crazy things.   
  
He, of all people, knew what that was like.   
  
“What about your parents?” Ace continued, looking more contemplative, though his glare was still in place, though it seemed to look more wary than angry.   
  
“I don’t have any family except Grandpa.”   
  
Ace paused, and Sabo glanced back at him as he felt where this conversation was going. They had a similar talk to this one back then too.   
  
“So you feel better when you’re around me?”   
  
“Yeah.”   
  
“You…you need me?”   
  
“Yeah.”   
  
Ace seemed to look more uncertain, but swallowed it down and asked, “Do you…want me to be alive?”   
  
“Of course!!” Luffy seemed to look confused at that last question, answering immediately like it was the most obvious thing. Like there was no other answer (though Sabo felt the same as well).   
  
Ace’s eyes widened a fraction, his glare disappearing and a subtle expression of surprise settled in its place. Sabo smiled when the guarded stance and expression on his friend’s face dropped.   
  
That was as good of an acceptance as any when it came to Ace. And he and Luffy falling into a heated argument again right after just helped to seal the deal, literally butting heads as they yelled and postured at each other, their voices carrying in the stillness and murk of the forest.   
  
Sabo glanced around the shadows around them, hand tightening around his pipe.   
  
Right. Before they get too carried away…   
  
“Hey, so I got a problem here,” Sabo said, stepping between them as he pushed their heads away from each other. “You see, I’ve been living at the Gray Terminal my whole life, but after this, it’ll be too dangerous for me to stay here any longer.”   
  
He looked at the both of them, though he gave a long look to Ace who seemed to understand what he about to say.   
  
“From now on, all three of us are gonna be hunted down by those pirates…which means I'll need a new place to stay now. Or else, I’ll probably end up dead by morning.”   
  
.   
  
..   
  
...   
  
..   
  
.   
  
The trip through the paths of Mt. Corvo didn’t take very long. And Sabo didn’t remember much of it before they proceeded to pass the hell out, the exhaustion of the day finally catching to each of them and pulling them to a tangled pile on the floor.   
  
At least they remembered to get some blankets for themselves before they fell asleep.   
  
The three of them would have probably slept through the whole morning too, but a raspy outraged cry roused them and Sabo rubbed his eye as they all got up to deal with their rude awakening.   
  
Sabo simply grinned, immediately shaking hands with Dadan when he realized that the bandit boss was the one that woke them up,   
  
The crowd of her clan stood behind her with looks of confusion, unable to make heads or tails of the additional brat that seemed to have appeared overnight like some sort of weed. Though Dadan seemed to have some gleam of recognition in her glaring eyes.   
  
So Sabo quickly introduced himself, insulted her right back, and thanked her for taking him in without skipping a beat.   
  
She didn’t have time to form words as she sputtered, her scowl falling to the same look of befuddlement as the ones around her, but Sabo’s spent years dealing with Ace’s moods and attitude so this was a breeze.   
  
His lodgings were settled and done with. Not that the bandits had much of a choice.   
  
Still, Dadan was such a nice old hag for not trying to kick him out.   
  
The three of them rushed out of the hut, unheeding to her demands of doing work for them to earn their keep as the group headed towards the forests of Mt. Corvo.   
  
Just the three of them: Ace, Sabo and Luffy, running off to brave the wilderness that few dared to tread.   
  
And there was something about that, that just felt right.   
  
.   
  
..   
  
...   
  
..   
  
.   
  
Sabo knew how to swim.   
  
It was something he learned how to do, something that he had to know how to do. Because both he and Ace swore to be pirates, and whoever heard of a pirate who couldn’t even swim?   
  
They were going to be out in the open ocean, surrounded by leagues of water that stretched to the far horizon, and if they went overboard for any reason then it would serve them well to learn how to not drown at the very least.   
  
Besides, with he and Ace usually hunting crocodiles together for meals on the daily, among other beasts that ruled the jungle that they spent years learning how to fight and take down (save for the jungle lords, of course), it was just something they’d end up being forced to learn one way or another. It wouldn’t be good for the hunter to become the hunted if they end up falling into the water after all.   
  
And over time, they’ve grown pretty proficient enough at it to the point that the two boys could safely say they could kill a crocodile without ever getting their clothes wet.   
  
But Luffy didn’t have that experience.   
  
They didn’t know if he could even swim.   
  
And they quickly learned that the answer to that particular question, watching in horror as Luffy flailed frantically in the water like prey. And like any opportunistic predator, a crocodile had seen the chance to swim underneath the boy and, with jaws rising from beneath the surface of the river, swallowed him whole.   
  
The next moments were frayed with worry. Sabo and Ace worked to lure the beast closer to the shoreline, throwing rocks and taunts as they hopped from one jutting stone to the next as it followed them in irritation.   
  
The two of them split. Sabo continued to egg on their quarry, while Ace kept away from its line of sight.   
  
The beast hissed, lashing out at Sabo, who barely managed to dodge in time and roughly landed on to another rock which he scrambled to find a hold on. Luckily it was the only opening Ace needed, who sneaked around and leapt onto its back before slamming his pipe to the base of its skull so hard that the repair he made to the piece of metal had unraveled, and it was bent out of shape again.   
  
But one strike was all it took for the crocodile to still, like someone cut the strings of a puppet, and the two boys heaved it to the rocky shore.   
  
Sabo’s legs quivered as they waded through the water. He found it difficult to gather his strength, but he pressed onward. Whether it was from the fear or exhaustion still lingering on from yesterday he didn’t honestly care, because all he knew was that Luffy was still in their kill, and they weren’t keen on losing him again.   
  
Ace forced the jaws apart, while Sabo propped it up with his own pipe it to keep it open and started to climb in. But he barely began his way down its throat before, out from the belly of the beast, shot out…two arms?   
  
Arms that quickly wrapped around Sabo, and he barely had any time to react or even piece together what the hell was happening before something slammed hard against his chest and threw them back farther up the shore. He ended up landing roughly on his back, river rocks poking his back as a familiar garbled sobbing drifted to his ears, and Sabo couldn’t help but feel his body lax as he grinned down at the tears, snot and crocodile spit covered face of Luffy.   
  
“I thou—! I THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO DIE AGAIN!” Luffy wailed, sniffling as more tears rolled down his face. “I WAS SO SCARED!”   
  
Sabo only wriggled his arms out of the Luffy’s tight embrace and patted the other boy’s head with a placating, wry smile as he watched with undisguised curiosity as Luffy’s arms returned back to their normal length.   
  
Eventually, he sat them both up as Ace walked up to them, Luffy’s straw hat in hand.   
  
Ace paused behind Luffy, raising up his free hand as he curled it to a fist, breathed on it, and punched the top of Luffy’s head.   
  
“OW! What was that for?” Luffy yelled, turning around to glare at the older boy as he jumped to his feet.   
  
“For falling into the water and getting eaten!” Ace sneered as he crossed his arms. “If it weren’t for me and Sabo, you would have been stuck inside a crocodile’s belly like an idiot!”   
  
“No, I wouldn’t! I would have figured a way out!”   
  
“Yeah right! As if a weakling crybaby like you could have gotten out of that crocodile alone! ”   
  
“Shut up! I’m not weak! I’ll prove it to you!”   
  
“Maybe not now, alright?” Sabo smiled easily as he stepped between them, prying the straw hat away from Ace and settled it back on Luffy’s head where it belonged. “The important thing is that Luffy’s safe. Now, how about we eat some crocodile for lunch?”   
  
“Yes please!” Luffy beamed at Sabo, shedding his anger as quickly as a blink of an eye.   
  
Sabo went ahead towards their kill, and Luffy skipped after him as Ace frowned, following after them. “You’re just lucky since you got swallowed whole.”   
  
Luffy pouted, turning back to Ace to bark back a reply before Sabo piped up. “He’s right, you know. You should be more careful, Luffy. If it bit down anywhere else, you could have died, or lost a limb.”   
  
Luffy’s eyes seemed to widen at that, his mouth clamping shut while Ace and Sabo focused on preparing to cook their catch.   
  
Luffy ended up going a little quiet for a few more beats. Which, even in the short time knowing Luffy, seemed out of character for him to do. Sabo glanced back at him over his shoulder.   
  
It almost seemed like Luffy was remembering something.   
  
Eventually, the boys quickly made a fire, letting the crocodile roast over it as they settled around it while they waited. Ace decided to fiddle with his pipe, a frown marring his face while Sabo looked curiously at Luffy’s drooling expression, thinking back to before.   
  
“Oh, by the way, Luffy,” Sabo mused catching the boy’s attention as he hummed a reply. “What was up with your arms earlier?”   
  
“Yeah, that was kind of freaky,” Ace said, putting away his broken pipe behind him as he looked at Luffy with a raised brow.   
  
“Oh! It’s my devil fruit!” Luffy grinned, rocking back in forth as he sat with legs crossed.   
  
“Devil fruit?” Ace asked, perking up, though looked a little dubious. “Wait, those things actually exist?”   
  
“Yep!” Luffy stood up with a proud smile on his face. “I ate the gum-gum fruit! So now I’m a rubber man, see?” He proceeded to pinch his cheeks and pulled it apart, and sure enough, it began to stretch farther than what was humanly possible. He let go, letting them snap back to normal, much like his arms did before. “But Shanks told me that people who ate one won’t be able to swim anymore.”   
  
“I see,” Sabo mused, glancing to see how the crocodile was cooking as he poked it with his pipe. “I guess that explains why you were flailing in the water earlier.” He hit Luffy’s creeping hands with his pipe. “No, it needs a few more minutes.”   
  
To which Luffy only whined, sitting back down as he watched the meat intently. Drool slipping from the corners of his mouth once again, eyes twinkling in barely restrained anticipation.   
  
“So in exchange for not being able to swim ever again, your body turned to rubber?” Ace crossed his arms, looking none too impressed. “What a crappy deal!”   
  
“Shut up! It’s not crappy! I can use a lot of unbeatable attacks!”   
  
And once more they spiraled into another argument, the both of them jumping to their feet and yelling at each other’s faces, while Sabo continued to sit and mind their food.   
  
There was…there was a niggling feeling at the back of his mind, feeling almost like he was forgetting something.   
  
Something important.   
  
Something he meant to deal with…later.   
  
Wait.   
  
“Hey, Luffy?” Sabo started, the memories of yesterday morning sharply snapping back to the front of his mind.   
  
“Yeah?”   
  
“So you ate a devil fruit, right?”   
  
“Yeah,” and both Ace and Luffy looked at Sabo at that, though he didn’t notice their curious stares as he focused at his open hands, remembering the sensations that prickled up his arms, the glow that outlined the items in his hands.   
  
“What did it look like exactly?” He asked finally, clenching his hands to fists and looked up at Luffy.   
  
Ace seemed to realize that something was up, his puzzled expression falling away to concern as he turned expectantly to Luffy as well.   
  
Luffy cupped his chin as he thought hard to remember.   
  
“Um, it was…it was round! And like purply? Oh! And it was swirly! Like this!” And with that, he drew what seemed to be spirals in the air. “Why?”   
  
Ace’s eyes shrunk into slits, “Yeah. Why, Sabo?”   
  
Sabo scratched his head, smiling nervously as he remembered the odd fruit he ate the previous morning. It definitely sounded similar to how Luffy described it, but it wasn’t round. It was more of an elongated pear, and it was light blue in hue.   
  
Still.   
  
“Did it…did it taste terrible, by chance?”   
  
“Yeah!”   
  
Ace’s eyes grew in realization. “Wait, Sabo, don’t tell me…”   
  
Sabo only smiled sheepishly at him, chuckling shakily.   
  
“I…I might have.”   
  
“What? When?!” Ace gaped moving closer to inspect his friend, who stood up quickly and started to retreat backwards, only for his back to press back against a gigantic boulder they had settled next to.   
  
“Woah! Sabo has a devil fruit?! Cool! What power do you have?!” Luffy followed Ace’s lead, eyes gleaming as he caught on and began to poke and prod the other boy with excitement as if he could activate the boy’s new abilities.   
  
“I ended up finding it in the treasure I got from the job yesterday,” Sabo said sweating slightly. “I didn’t know it was a devil fruit! I was just hungry. But ever since then I’ve been having these weird tingly feelings when I hold stuff in both my hands.”   
  
“Oh! I wanna see!” And immediately Luffy ran off to find something for Sabo to hold onto, while Ace looked at Sabo with an unreadable expression.   
  
That was before it quickly fell into an outraged expression as Luffy ran back with the broken halves of Ace’s pipe.   
  
“Oi! That’s mine!” But Luffy ignored him with a smile and put one of them in each of Sabo’s hands.   
  
“Here!” And before Ace could snatch it back, Sabo felt the tingling up his arms, and the three of them watched as the outline of the two pieces glowed, and Luffy let out a whoop, clapping excitedly while the other two boys stared at the sight with wide disbelieving eyes. “Come on! Come on! I wanna see Sabo’s devil fruit!”   
  
Sabo and Ace stared at each other for a few tense moments. Finally, Ace crossed his arms. “You heard him.”   
  
And this time, Sabo just let his instincts lead him. The objects in his hands suddenly gaining their own magnetic pull that grew stronger the closer he moved them to each other until eventually, the objects touched. The light that sat on the edges engulfed the rest of it, and the pieces glowed with their own inner light.   
  
And what was left, as the light died down, was a single metal pipe.   
  
A few beats after, Ace took that as his cue to snatch it back, finding that the two halves had indeed became one piece once more. Almost like it had never broken at all.   
  
He tapped it against his palm and experimentally swung it a few times in the air, before stealing a glance to where Sabo was. With a gleam in his eyes, he adjusted his grip on his pipe before swinging it towards the other boy.   
  
Sabo made a surprised yelp as he barely dodged the strike, the pipe instead finding its mark on the boulder instead, creating a web of cracks from the impact. But the pipe did not break.   
  
“What the hell,” Ace muttered.   
  
“OI! THAT’S MY LINE!” Sabo yelled beside Luffy, who was picking his nose with his pinky. “What the hell was that, Ace?!”   
  
“That’s for not telling me you ate a devil fruit!”   
  
“I told you, I didn’t even know it was a devil fruit! Besides things got a little hectic yesterday, you idiot!”   
  
“Oh! So that’s Sabo’s mystery power? It’s pretty weird!”   
  
And Sabo could feel himself absently agreeing with Luffy, as he glared at his friend, who simply huffed and crossed his arms.   
  
Sabo scowled back, before turning to his hands like he was seeing it just for the first time. Because he just managed to fix something that was broken with just his bare hands without using anything else to put it back together, though he didn’t know how he exactly did so.   
  
However, it did prove one thing. That he really did eat an actual, genuine devil fruit. Something that was said to only be a rumor and told in stories of the oceans beyond their island.   
  
And Sabo never planned on eating a devil fruit, let alone thought one could really exist.   
  
But then again, they also never planned on letting the annoying boy that chased after Ace for months on end to join them.   
  
Nor did they ever thought to go against the Bluejam pirates that ruled the nearby cove, but fate seemed to have conspired behind their backs and the things that they never thought they would do had happened.   
  
And Sabo didn’t really know what power he had now, or what that exactly makes him now, but, as he flexed his fingers with the smile on his face growing alongside the thoughts and theories of his newfound abilities, he couldn’t find himself to care too much.   
  
Whatever it was, he was sure he’ll figure it out eventually.   
  
Besides he won’t be alone.   
  
He had Ace and Luffy to help him out after all.

 


	2. From Two To Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, hello! Sorry for the long wait! This particular chapter took a lot longer than I expected since it just didn't want to cooperate, but I hope the length makes up for it!
> 
> Hopefully the next one doesn't take as long, but anyways I'd like to say that I'm taking this AU to other places than I previously planned, and this piece is just one arc of 3 that I have in mind.
> 
> But for now, hope you enjoy!

Ace didn’t really know what to make of his life at the moment.

So much had happened in barely a day, that he was still trying to wrap his mind around everything within the whirlwind of events that went down.

All he knew for certain was that it only turned out that way because it was his fault.

Sure, no one had pointed their fingers at him in the end, forgotten and buried shortly afterward. Even if Sabo had been angry at first for his mistake, Ace could see past his words to know well enough that was no real heat it, but still, that didn’t change the fact of the matter.

It was his fault. Pure and simple.

Besides, how could it have been anyone else?

He was the one who made the mistake of stealing from Bluejam’s goons in the first place. No matter whether or not he knew that it was the pirate's loot.

And Sabo had always warned him to be careful in choosing what kind of ‘jobs’ he decided to take too, but Ace had gone ahead and screwed that up, of course.

Luffy’s sudden appearance, and him finding out about his and Sabo’s pirate fund wouldn’t have changed anything. Because if no one had been looking for the money Ace stole, then no one would have cared to check on Luffy’s grating wails for help.

There was plenty of that to go around at Trash Mountain anyway.

One kid crying for help wasn’t anything out of the norm.

So now, the three of them have a target painted on their backs; wanted by a pirate crew that was pissed off for a bunch of kids beating one of their crewmembers, and who still wanted their money back.

Fat chance they’d return it though. The money was theirs now, no matter what trouble it had caused. Especially not after they went ahead and beat up one of their crew members (not that they had much of a choice; the guy had Luffy after all).

Besides, it wasn’t like giving it all back was going to appease them anyway, so it was just better to put it to use for a cause they believed in; buying a ship for them to sail off one day to become pirates.

It was one of the few bright sides they had to make up for an all-around crappy day.

(Another was that they managed to take down a real pirate and live to tell the tale, but still...)

Ace didn’t even want to start thinking about how close Sabo had gotten killed in that fight with Porchemy.

(One slip up, one bad timing.

If he dodged Porchemy’s blade a second too late, his best friend would have been sliced through cleanly like his pipe in that fight. And he didn’t really want to think about that.

He gets nightmares of that scenario plenty enough.)

And he didn’t want to think about what happened with Luffy either.

(Stupid, dopey, idiotic Luffy. All smiles and constant talk about wanting to be friends with him for months. He was a big headache and a chatterbox…

But then again, maybe not. The little idiot did refuse to blab the truth about his and Sabo’s pirate fund. Even under torture.

And Sabo had seen the bloodied gloves, and shared it to Ace in a hushed voice tinged with something like disbelief and respect and horror rolled into one, as they made their way back to Dadan’s hut, with Luffy had finally passed out on Ace’s back — from the toss-up of either exhaustion or blood loss, neither of them was sure.

And Ace still didn’t understand it. Why Luffy would risk himself like that for them because it just didn’t make sense.

But then he remembers the desperation in Luffy’s voice when he cried that he felt alone, and how Ace made him feel less so. Even when he ended up being battered and bruised and whatever else at the end of the day.

Because it just couldn’t compare to the ache of having no one around him at all.)

(And if Sabo had noticed that Ace had been gentle in putting Luffy’s sleeping form on the floor despite his exhaustion, then the other boy didn’t say anything about it.

Not that he could, since he passed out on the floor next to Luffy the moment they got some of the spare blankets.)

At this point, Ace decided that it was better not to even think about any of it at all.

(Because he can't take the thought of either of them getting hurt because of him. He didn't want to be alone either.)

It was over and done with.

All he had to do now was to make sure that he doesn't make another mistake like that again.

 

.

..

...

..

.

 

The three of them decided to lie low at Mt. Corvo for a week.

Which was a little out of the norm. Since it was just time wasted when they’re not out to gather money for their pirate fund. But it was something that Sabo had asked for.

A week of staying on the mountain, instead of going on to their usual routine of taking ‘jobs’ as they usually do.

And not because they got chased around the Gray Terminal when they decided to check how badly the pirates were pissed at them.

(Which the answer to that was: very.)

Not even for the reason that Bluejam's crew managed to persuade the people from Trash Mountain to join in on the search for them. Much to Sabo’s disappointment.

(Though having grown up there, Ace thought that he should have at least seen it coming.

People there just wouldn’t dare put up any kind of fights when they knew they wouldn't win. Especially considering it was the pirates from the cove, and no one would ever dare cross those guys.

Well, except for them.)

And it was certainly not because they were waiting for the heat on them to die down.

Really, the main reason that Sabo asked them to wait for a week is that, of all things, both he and Luffy were actually devil fruit users now.

Which isn’t actually as exciting as what rumors about the fruits make them out to be. If anything, the whole thing was just weird. Especially with just watching both Sabo and Luffy trying (and failing) to use their abilities during their one hundred rounds of sparring for the day.

And as much as it was cool to fight against people with actual devil fruit abilities, the novelty of it kind of fizzled out after watching Sabo and Luffy kind of fumble with their powers the first day.

Well, mostly Luffy.

But then Sabo hadn't lost to Ace so much in...well, ever.

Usually, he and Sabo were pretty evenly matched for the most part.

But ever since discovering that he actually had a devil fruit power now, Sabo had been trying to adjust his fighting style to accommodate for his new powers.

“The Fuse-fuse fruit, I think,” Sabo had told them, mouth full of fish as they ate their breakfast. Though when they asked him how he knew, he just shrugged, smiling helplessly. “It just came to my head. It feels right though, for some reason.”

Besides that, Ace didn’t think that Sabo himself knew for sure how it worked completely, seeming to just go with his instincts for the most part and working it out as he went.

Which hadn’t done him any favors; Sabo seemed to need a lot of concentration and time to even just use his devil fruit, leaving him open for any attack that Ace knew he could have easily countered if he wasn’t relying on it so much.

And Ace told him as such after the fiftieth time Sabo landed on his back that day, a scowl on his face.

(He really wasn't used to seeing fifty wins under his name when it came to Sabo.)

Though Sabo just groused that he wasn’t relying on his powers, he was training it. There was a difference.

If he didn’t make it a point to use on the daily, especially in a fight, then he’d never get better and he’d never know how to use it at all.

It was like when they were learning how to fight back then, he had said.

Reminding Ace of the times back then, and how they had flailed and stumbled at first. The two of them not truly knowing what they were doing when they had met all those years ago and became friends.

It was only after months of fighting against the thugs and punks around the Gray Terminal and Edge Town, sparring against each other, and hunting and training around Mt. Corvo in between, every day, that they started to get better. That they really started getting a handle on how to move and strike and defend themselves in their battles.

(Because the shitty old man never really taught him how to fight.

Garp only crashed into his life periodically, yelling about making Ace a great marine, before proceeding to use him as a punching bag for the rest of the day, before leaving again the next day as quickly as he came, promising to be harsher next time.

How was that supposed to teach him anything anyway?

Or even make him want to be a marine?

The old man was crazy.)

“The more you train, the stronger you get,” Sabo told them with a nod, closing his eyes and crossing his arms as if he was saying something wise. “And I think that’s the same for devil fruits. The more you use your powers, the easier it is! You just have to get used to it, you know?”

Which made sense, but still didn’t really stop Ace from making fun of them.

Sabo was smart though (much smarter than him and Luffy, that’s for sure).

And sure enough, Sabo had seemed to gain a better hold over his new abilities and began to turn things around at each passing day.

“Guess that’s it,” Sabo panted, staring down at Ace who had his back on the grass this time, wheezing and groaning from the punch to the face. Sabo adjusted his hat, giving Ace a grin; one part smug and the other part playful. “That’s another win for me.”

Ace returned his own smile, mostly frustrated. His hand drifted up to cup the sore spot that might become a bruise. “Damn it! I was so close too!”

“Ah well,” Sabo sing-songed, clasping his hands behind his head as he spun on his heels and headed his way towards the scoreboard. “Better luck next time!”

Ace only rolled his eyes, before his body following suit to stand up. “You only won because of your devil fruit! If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were trying to kill me!”

Ace gestured to the half-formed spikes behind him, made out of earth and stone, with grass still clinging on its sides. They were about the height of his shoulders and was definitely something that he didn't expect to happen Sabo had ducked down and touched the ground. The light had erupted to spread out on the area in front of him and just started to grow and form into a small wall of spikes.

“Well it's not like you got hit by them,” Sabo said, tussling Luffy’s hair as he passed the other boy, pulling away Luffy's attention from the beetle that was hobbling along a tree nearby. Luffy gave him his usually sunny smile, watching as Sabo adjusted the scores on the board. Thirty wins for Sabo, twenty wins for Ace. “Besides, not my fault you got so distracted you didn’t notice me coming up behind you! That’s ambush tactic number one!”

“Hey, hey, Sabo!” Luffy piped up. “What was that move?!”

“I thought of it yesterday!” Sabo grinned at him with pride, hands on his hips. "I wanted to keep it a secret until I could actually do it properly. It's not perfect yet, though." He looked over, past Ace as he joined them near the board. "It's pretty flimsy though. Probably wouldn't even have hurt if you ran into it."

Sabo gave him a sly grin, and Ace punched his shoulder in retaliation. The other boy gave him an overdramatic hurt expression, and Ace was about to grab the edge of his damned top hat and pull it down on his face, but Sabo had already moved away from his twitching hands, laughing.

"Actually, it would be a lot better if I did it with something smaller..." Sabo glanced around before he found a piece of stone stuck into one of the spikes and pulled it out. After he did, the rest of the structure crumbled into a heap of itself. "See? Flimsy."

Ace rolled his eyes, and Luffy gave an enthusiastic nod as he bounced in place excitedly when Sabo returned with the rock and plopped himself down in front of him.

Sabo let the stone rest on his palm, smiling when Luffy leaned closer. "Hehe, better lean back a little, Luffy. I don't want to end up poking out your eye."

Luffy pulled back. But only a little. "Come on! Come on! I wanna see, Sabo!"

"Alright, alright." With his free hand, he touched the stone. " _Eligo,_ ” and with that, the stone was engulfed in light. Sabo's brow furrowed as he willed the light to pull back, pooling into the side of the rock that wasn't against touching his hand. Finally, he grinned.

“ _Ictus!_ ” Suddenly the lit up part of the stone rippled before it seemed like they were angry waves of the ocean. And Ace leaned over Luffy to have a closer look as the area seemed to explode outwards into sharp points.

Luffy and Ace gave an impressed “ooooh”, which made Sabo let out an embarrassed laugh, as he scratched the back of his head.

“Sabo’s powers are so cool!” Luffy crowed and made grabby hands at the rock. “He made a hedgehog!”

“That’s not what he made,” Ace said watching as Sabo carefully handed it over to Luffy. “But it definitely is a cooler power than yours.”

Luffy looked seconds away from jumping up with fists at the ready to challenge Ace to a fight again, but instead, he gave Ace his best glare, though it looked more like a huffy pout than anything else, not wanting to drop the hedgehog rock.

Sabo only laughed at them, his eyes catching the sight of Luffy’s hat on the grass right next to him before he placed it back on Luffy's head. “Well, after a break, wanna train together?”

“Yeah!” Luffy smiled, annoyance falling away like water as his attention was back on the stone, and he carefully poked the spikes.

Sabo gave Ace a lopsided grin, which he returned with his own, something warm in his chest despite him shaking his head.

Sabo had really gotten better at using his devil fruit.

Ace didn't even think that it could be used more than repairing stuff by putting it back together, but apparently, that was just the tip of the iceberg.

It was one of the other things they found out alongside the fact that Sabo had eaten a devil fruit. And out of all things, it was Luffy that had thought it. They just watched him intently scour the riverbank after eating the crocodile for breakfast before he returned, dumping a big stick and a river stone to Sabo, which glowed once they landed on his open palms.

Ace wasn't able to help himself as he leaned in close, shoulder to shoulder with Luffy as they gave Sabo meaningful and eager looks, making the other boy sigh and roll of his eyes.

They watched as Sabo stared at the items in concentration, their silhouettes changing after being engulfed with an inner light once more. he pushed them together, the two merging together into one before the light died to show...well.

"It looks like junk from the Gray Terminal," Ace laughed, Luffy joining him in agreement.

The final result had become a misshapen mishmash of the wooden stick and rock, like a child decided to crumple a plastic straw and a big glob of clay together to some kind of lump, and threw it in a fire to let it melt into each other.

Sabo just pouted at them but didn't really defend himself, instead he punched Ace's shoulder in response. Which made Luffy laugh even harder at him getting hit before Ace decided to bonk his head, and then one thing led to another and the three of them ended up tussling on the ground together, with Sabo ending up being pulled into the brawl at some point after Luffy tried to use him as a shield against Ace's onslaught.

Ever since then, Sabo had been practicing and experimenting even after their training sessions, usually waking up at some point in the middle of the night when he thought Ace and Luffy were asleep.

(And Ace was tempted to follow him out to watch sometimes. But then, Luffy would notice and would follow them, then none of them would get enough sleep for the day.

So he stayed put, and stayed awake, waiting for the other boy to come back in so he could fall asleep again.)

In any case, Sabo had figured out that he needed to physically touch an object and then it would glow, which was the sign his devil fruit was activated.

They didn't really realize it was going to be an issue. His powers didn't immediately activate when it was just one thing, but when he held two things it had been nearly impossible not to end up fusing them together. He ended up nearly fusing his top hat and his pipe together before Ace managed to catch his wrist and Sabo dropped the pipe before anything else could happen.

After that, Sabo had spent nearly the whole night gone, before coming back, exhausted and sleeping way past noon until Luffy's stomach woke them up and they had to hunt for a late lunch.

But since then, Sabo's moves always started with _Eligo_ , before he followed it up with something else.

(Ace had asked him why he named that and what it meant.

He didn't miss the way his friend’s eyes darted away from him, as if…nervous. But Sabo quickly gave him a smile and explained to him that he read it from a book. It meant 'to select', apparently.

Still, Ace couldn’t help but feel there was something more to it though, but instead, he just nodded and swiped the piece of meat on Sabo's plate and the two of them ended up kicking each other in the face as dinner raged on.)

But while Sabo had been improving during their spars, Luffy still couldn’t land a single hit on either Ace or Sabo.

For the most part, he ended up either punching himself or bouncing around whenever he used his powers in their spars and fights.

Though granted, Ace wasn’t sure how much of it could be blamed on Luffy’s own skills, or if it was the power itself that sucked.

And it probably didn't help that neither Ace or Sabo weren't going easy on him anyway, but then again holding back wasn't gonna help him toughen up either.

So far, the only saving grace for Luffy's powers was that at least they didn't have to worry about Luffy getting hurt too badly.

As Sabo explained, with his whole body being made of rubber, Luffy just had most attacks or blunt stuff bounce off of him. The only things they had to worry about were blades and other pointy things.

(It was why Porchemy used those spiked knuckles. They weren't going to let that happen again.)

It also partly explained why no matter what kind of dangerous situations that Ace threw Luffy in the past few months, he just wouldn't stay down.

Luffy carefully handed the rock over to Ace, as he raced to the other side of the clear, facing Sabo.

“Alright!” Sabo called, grabbing the rims of his top hat and tightening it around his head, as he flashed Luffy a challenging grin. "Come on, Luffy! Show me what you got!

“Right! Here I go!”

And with that, he charged ahead with his arm swinging around like a windmill.

“ _Gum-gum pistol!_ ” And Luffy’s fist flew at Sabo, sailing through the air as it extended past what was humanly possible.

Sabo made to dodge it, but its path towards him stuttered in midair, falling to the ground and rebounding up to hit Luffy’s face instead. Like it’s done so many times before.

Ace tried not to roll his eyes, watching Luffy stumble and fall in a heap on the grass around as Sabo laughed a little at the sight, looking at the center of Luffy's face reddened where his face where his fist struck.

“Come on!” Ace huffed, placing the rock next to their pipes leaning against the trees at the edge of the clearing. “Is that really all you can do?”

“Shut up!” Luffy growled, glaring at him as he jumped back on his feet. “If I could do it the way I want it to, then I’d totally beat you two!”

“Oh yeah, sure,” Ace said with as much belief as he had that the Bluejam Pirates would forgive them for stealing their treasure.

“It’s okay,” Sabo said with a sympathetic smile. “You just have to get used to using it.”

“AGH! Why can’t I get it to work?” Luffy whined, staring at his fists as if they were the ones at fault.

“You just suck at fighting,” Ace replied matter-of-factly, trying not to smile when Luffy tried to glare at him again.

Sabo gave him a sterner look, and Ace huffed. He could take the hint. Instead, Ace clasped his hands behind his head and pouted back at him.

It wasn’t like he was wrong, and Sabo rolled his eyes, seeming to hear that he didn't say.

Turning back his attention to Luffy, Sabo hummed. Like he usually did when he was thinking of something important, catching both of their attention.

“Luffy, can you try punching that boulder over there with your gum-gum pistol?” He pointed at the gray rock that sat on the other side of the clearing.

“Oh, sure!”

And just like that, Luffy jumped to his feet as he faced his new opponent instead.

Ace gave Sabo a questioning look, trying to parse out what his friend was up to as he also glanced at the boulder in question. Sabo only replied with his trademark smirk before turning to watch Luffy run towards the rock.

Nothing changed. His rubbery fist still found its mark square on his face, almost like it was being magnetized there, and made him fall back again.

“Okay, I think I got it," Sabo smiled as he squatted next to Luffy. "Can you do that again? But maybe try not to swing your arm and stand like this?”

And with that, he rose up but shifted his footing until his stance was wide but steady, and lowered his body.

Luffy stared at him for a few beats before following suit and copied his pose, looking back at Sabo for confirmation which he did with a nod.

“Now throw a punch!”

Luffy shifted his focus back on the boulder again, eyes burning fiercely as he pulled his arm back and punched forward. “ _Gum-guuuuuum….pistol!_ ”

Ace’s eyes followed the arc of the attack, watching as it continued straight onward through the air. He felt his eyes widened, seeing it strike its target true without deviating to Luffy.

A stunned silence followed as the arm seemed to stretch as far as it could and was suddenly pulled backwards. Luffy was too surprised to react in time, the returning momentum of the punch causing him to spin around twice before he staggered and fell into a pile on the floor.

“You did it!” Sabo cheered, his arms shooting up in excitement.

“I DID IT!” Luffy yelled, leaping back to his feet and grabbed onto Sabo’s jacket, jumping up and down excitedly as Sabo quickly did the same.

Ace couldn’t help but grin, watching them celebrate before walking over to the rock to look closely at the impact and see a web of cracks where it hit. “Not bad! Maybe if your hits landed like this more often, I wouldn’t call your devil fruit useless.”

Instead of getting angry, Luffy turned at him with a brighter gleam in his eyes, flashing him a feral grin. “Just you wait! I’ll beat you both of you!”

“Haha, well unlike the rock we’re not gonna sit still,” Sabo smirked with fondness, pulling down the straw hat over Luffy's eyes as he walked back to the other side of the clearing. “You have to get better at punching and get used to your powers to beat us! Not only that, but you have to work on that rebound too!”

Luffy pulled the hat back up to let him see, standing up to a fighting stance. “Right! Let’s do it again!”

And with that, Sabo and Luffy got back into training. Ace climbed up onto the rock and watched them go through the last forty-nine fights they had for the day before lunch.

For the earlier rounds, Sabo avoided using his powers, keeping to the usual punching and kicking and, of course, dodging. Though gradually including it again as time went on, especially when Luffy seemed to get a better hang of his gum-gum pistol and managed to land a hit in Sabo's gut, sending him flying into a tree.

In the end, Luffy still didn’t manage to win a lot of them, but unlike the other days before, he had won regardless.

(Even if his wins were one out of fifty.)

And despite still managing to eat dirt at the end of most of the rounds, Luffy beamed and bounced on his feet, talking with Sabo what else he needed to improve on after making sure the other boy was fine from the impact.

Sabo was fine, but afterwards, he trapped Luffy in a headlock and noogied him affectionately. But he gave Luffy other pointers and ideas for what to do with his powers and asked for Luffy to show him some other moves that he had in mind, ending up with the both of them just chatting and gesturing at each other at the end.

At least, until both of their stomachs grumbled.

“Alright you two,” Ace said, sliding down the rock to grab the hats that had tumbled off of their heads in the heat of their fighting and brainstorming, and plopped them back on the heads of where they belonged. “Come on! Lunch isn’t going to catch itself!”

And with that, he turned to the forest grabbing his pipe as he went, the familiar tromping behind him urging him to take off into a sprint as his friends rushed and called after him.

 

.

..

...

..

.

 

The rest of the week continued much in the same way, and Ace could barely imagine a time when he didn’t have Sabo and Luffy at his sides most of his waking hours.

It kind of surprised Ace how well the three of them settled into their new life together actually.

He had expected for there to be some kind of clash or discomfort, especially with Sabo being uprooted from his home and now forced to suddenly share a living space between each other and the bandits. Not to mention, having to include Luffy to his and Sabo’s existing dynamic.

But somehow, it just never happened.

Sabo took to the bandits and Dadan, and their mealtimes like he’s already lived with them for years, able to hold his own like Ace expected him to.

(And watching him expertly bat Luffy and three other bandits from his bowl of meat, part of Ace wondered why he didn’t push for Sabo to live him instead of the other way around.

Sabo seemed to be a lot happier here than the times they ate together in Middle Forest.)

As for Luffy, he was still whiny and goofy for the most part, that hadn't changed.

Always saying he was hungry more often than not and talking about some pirate named Shanks when something reminded him of the guy. But he didn’t seem…to grate on Ace’s nerves as much as he expected.

Of course, it helped that Sabo quickly treated Luffy like he was already one of them, so it was easier for him to do the same. Or maybe sharing a near-death experience just really helped them skip a few steps in the friendship process.

Dadan, of course, kicked up a fuss about their brat counter rising to three. The rest of the bandits already knew it was a lost cause though, which didn’t do much to comfort her. She ended up spending the first few days drinking and complaining about Garp not paying her enough for putting up with monstrous kids who thought it was a good idea to piss off Bluejam.

Speaking of Bluejam, none of the pirates from the Cove seemed to venture too deep into Mt. Corvo, seeming to know better than to trespass into the mountain’s wild, untamed landscape.

Which was good for them. Seemed to ease the bandits’ minds, at least. Though Dadan still had a few of them watch the usual paths just in case.

In any case, the three of them kept to the forest for the better part of those few days, only returning at night after they caught dinner for the bandits and themselves, before they went to bed, ending up in a tangled mess of arms and legs slung over the other, which Ace realized that he liked more than he thought he would.

Not that he would ever admit it.

And as the days passed, there was a feeling in his chest that was beginning to be difficult to ignore more and more.

A fierceness that he tried not to think about too hard unless it flared up uncontrollably. Something that made him lose himself and everything else around him. Like a rage that he couldn’t contain. The same sort of feeling that ran through his veins when he saw Porchemy about to kill Luffy that fateful day.

Or just today, when Sabo fell into a creek.

Because Sabo knew how to swim.

Of course, he did.

The two of them learned how to do it together.

They had raced together in creeks and rivers that they found were safe to swim him, had splash fights and battles against creatures that they imagined they would encounter when they set sail into the sea together and held competitions of who could hold their breath underwater the longest (which they were still tied together since last summer when the week-long heatwave forced them to find some way to stay cool for most of the day).

And so when Sabo fell into a creek after slipping on the slick, moss-covered rocks during one of their training runs around Mt. Corvo, Ace wasn’t too worried at first.

But then Luffy cried out Sabo’s name hysterically as he nearly jumped in after him, before Ace caught him and pulled him back when everything came rushing back to him because he had forgotten.

Sabo can’t swim anymore because he ate a devil fruit.

Both he and Sabo thought it was a rumor at first. It was just kind of hard to believe. But Luffy explained that those who ate a devil fruit were hammers in the water, telling them in a voice that was very unlike him, all serious and soft.

Ace felt terrible he ended up pushing him into the tub when they were just playing together one night, watching him go slack in the waist-deep water that Ace felt fear stab into his heart when Luffy wasn't able to move at all, and he quickly dove in and helped pull him out.

(And if anyone noticed that Ace let Luffy steal most of his meat afterwards, then no one mentioned it.)

Ace didn’t think at that moment as he jumped in after Sabo, throwing his pipe behind him and barked at Luffy to wait for them.

Bubbles obscured his vision as they drifted up and past him. Ace blinked his eyes, trying to get used to the murky waters as he looked around for his friend, grateful that the creek ended up being one of the few places that the crocodiles didn't live in.

Ace felt his chest clench painfully when he finally spotted Sabo.  
Just stock still in the waters as he made no move to save himself, drifting down to the muddy bottom.

Sabo had his hands over his mouth though, eyes clenched desperately as if it was taking all his strength to even do just that.

Ace swam his way down to him, arm snaking around Sabo’s middle to hold him close, before pulling them up out of the water, breaking the surface.

Sabo had coughed and sputtered, wheezing as he sucked in precious air desperately.

And Ace tried not to think too much of how Sabo would have laughed off for having fallen in the water in the first place, how the other boy would have trod the water easily and made his way to the shore without his help. How the creek wasn’t even that deep.

But Sabo’s body was still limp against Ace’s own, eyes half-mast like he was half-asleep while Ace kept their heads above water and kicked themselves to the direction of the shore.

“Thanks, Ace,” Sabo mumbled, voice soft but tired, and Ace clenched his jaw to avoid yelling at his friend because now wasn’t the time to get angry at him. Instead, he focused on where Luffy was waving to them wildly with his usually big goofy smile, and relief welling up in his eyes.

Ace heaved Sabo to the grass, the other boy panting, sprawled on his back while Luffy hugged him like a snake and cheered that Sabo was okay.

“Oh, where’s your hat?” Luffy said suddenly, after pulling back to give a discerning look at his waterlogged friend.

“Crap, it must be still in the water.”

“I’ll get it.”

And with that, Ace had dove back into the water to search for the missing top hat, finding it in the weedy water plants that swayed lazily on the bottom.

He tried not to think of how Sabo was unable to swim now.

Tried not to think about what would have happened if they didn’t figure out one of the drawbacks to having a devil fruit sooner.

Because then he'd end up having to need to save both Sabo and Luffy.

Tried not to think of having to need to choose one or the other, and hoping that the one he that didn't choose wouldn't end up drowning.

“I didn’t realize it would feel like that,” Ace heard Sabo say, as he made his way back to them. Sabo wrung out the water drenching in his coat as Luffy sat across him. “Like it didn’t matter if I knew how to swim, because my body just wouldn’t listen to me! It was like the water was taking my strength away and—oh! You found it thanks—Ace?” Sabo’s voice trailed off, eyes alert now as he looked at him.

Ace didn’t realize that his shoulders were shaking. Hands gripped the edge of the top hat tightly, as they curled into tight fists. His face twitching before crumpling into anger, his trembling lips pulling back to a snarl.

“Couldn’t you have been more careful?!” Ace grounded out, and he tried so hard to keep his outrage in check because Sabo was okay now and that was all that matters.

But Sabo can’t swim, and that small creek shouldn’t have been a challenge for him, but that didn’t matter now because it didn’t change the fact that he can’t swim anymore and he nearly drowned and—

Sabo stood up to reach out to him, but Ace dodged his hand and shot back a glare, stopping him in his tracks.

Sabo let his outstretched arm fall to his side, eyes searching the other boy’s face before eventually, he sighed; sounding like the kind of sigh he used when Ace was being unreasonable again.

“Sorry, Ace,” Sabo eventually said, scratching the back of his head. “Still getting used to this whole devil fruit thing.”

“I don’t care,” he bit back, though it lacked the heat from earlier as he looked away. “Just don’t fall in again. I don’t want to have to fish you out again, we already get that plenty with Luffy.”

And Luffy laughed at that, even when Sabo turned to him to tell him that Ace just insulted him. And he and Sabo just shook their heads with a sigh while Luffy just kept laughing.

Sabo turned back to Ace with an easy smile.

“I’ll try not to,” he said, an odd twinkle in his eye. “But even if it does happen again, I know we can rely on you to make sure we don’t drown, no matter what.”

And Ace didn’t blush, because no one saw the heat that definitely didn’t color his freckled cheeks red as he crossed towards Sabo and jammed the hat back to his head.

The water that was still trapped inside to tipped out and drenched Sabo all over again, making him sputter in indignation as he glared at Ace who was already making his way towards their training grounds.

The forest’s shade hiding his face, as he ran away from grateful smiles and unsaid thank yous.

They didn’t really talk about it the rest of the day, the three of them distracted with training and fighting, and Ace was a little relieved when Sabo and Luffy finished their rounds with him first, with Luffy even managing to land a couple of solid hits on him this time, though not really winning any of them. All the while Sabo was still cheating with him using his devil fruit powers and won thirty of their fifty fights.

It was the end of the week now.

They would go back to their usual routine of stealing and earning money for their pirate fund, but Ace felt like there was something different now.

Not because of the pirates gunning for their heads now, or even the fact that two of his friends were devil fruit users now.

He didn’t understand it either, and the feelings he’s had trouble giving a name to didn’t help. At least, until today.

The horror and fear that gripped him when he remembered and thought of Luffy and Sabo nearly dying left him breathless like a knife in the chest.

Because all he could think in his desperation was that he didn’t want to lose them. He wanted to protect them.

And thinking about it now, even more, if something terrible ever happened to them…he really wouldn’t know what to do with himself.

Honestly, it was something that he always knew deep down, but having it thrown at his face like that...)

“Hey, Ace? You awake?”

Ace gave a quiet sigh, raising his head to look at Sabo over Luffy’s sprawled body that was sandwiched between them.

Sabo had propped his head up with his arm, smiling at him before he gestured his head down to Luffy who was snoring away, his arms having had found their way around both Ace and Sabo at some point and curled around them. And Ace would usually find it a little annoying, but he couldn't deny the smile forming on his mouth as he gently pulled off the straw hat off Luffy's head, and placed it above his pillow.

Ace looked back at Sabo, rolling his eyes at Sabo's knowing smile as he shifted himself to something more comfortable to face him properly.

“What? What is it?” Ace asked softly.

They didn't really have to whisper. They knew that nothing short of a cannon could wake up Luffy at this point. Or more reliably, food. But still. Neither of them wanted to wake him on the off-chance of their voices stirring him.

“You just seemed out of it today,” Sabo shrugged, scratching his head. “I mean, you didn’t even insult me or Luffy as much today when we were training.”

“I don’t do that.” Sabo gave him a look. “…I don’t do it that much.” A raised eyebrow. “I only do that when you guys suck.”

“And we didn’t today?”

Ace glanced away and shrugged. “Guess not.”

Sabo didn’t look too convinced. “Not even when Luffy launched himself up into a tree and he got all his arms and legs tangled up in the branches?”

“That was pretty funny, honestly," Ace chuckled.

Sabo tried to stifle his laughter. "Yeah, took a while to untangle him though. I thought we wouldn’t be able to catch anything before sundown.”

Luffy grumbled, his arms pulling them to hug them closer as he shifted in his sleep. The two of them just automatically shuffled closer to get themselves more comfortable.

There wasn’t much they could do when Luffy got his arms around them like this, clinging almost as his life depended on it. It was like it was uncomfortable, it was more of a hassle to get out of it, which they found out pretty early on. Besides, they couldn't deny that it was nice. Comforting.

Ace’s hands curled into fists as he let out a heavy sigh.

“I…” Ace tried to find the words, his voice trailing off as he focused solely on Luffy drooling face. Sabo’s gaze zeroed in on him.

“Is this about me falling into the creek?” Sabo offered when the silence stretched on.

“Sort of? I mean, kind of?” Ace carefully rolled onto his back, suddenly feeling tired, but not in the way that would drag his mind to sleep. “It has something to do with that, I guess. Helped me figure something out at least.”

“Which is?”

And the words were there. He could feel it form at the tip of his tongue, but to say it was another thing to just...say it out in the open. He almost felt like he was throwing himself recklessly into a fight with nothing but his fists. It was a fight that wasn't really a fight, but his heart was racing and his palms started to feel sweaty anyway, as he tried to force it out and push through it as he did with most things.

“I…I care about you guys…a lot," he finally said, soft as a whisper but in the silence of the hut, it felt like he shouted it. "It’s just kind of…scary. I guess.”

“Oh,” Sabo simply hummed, sounding as casual as can be. “Is that it?”

“What-” Ace pushed himself up before freezing. Luffy kept snoring and he sighed, sending Sabo a glare, to which Sabo only smiled serenely back at him, that odd gleam returning into his expression. "What's that supposed to mean?"

“I just thought that it was pretty clear,” Sabo said in amusement before he laid on his back and shifted his gaze up to the ceiling. “But I think I get what you mean. It's kind of scary...caring about someone that way. I never really felt this way about anyone before." He shrugged before glancing back at Ace. "It feels different than just being friends, you know? Even best friends.”

Ace nodded, shifting to sit up more properly.

As usual, Sabo was right on the money, putting the words to Ace's feelings when he wasn’t able to articulate it properly.

It just didn’t feel right calling them all as simply friends. They felt more than that. Like their bonds with each other ran deeper than that, more stronger than anything else.

“Maybe…” Ace began uncertainly but shook his head, closing his eyes.

“Like family?” Sabo ended, glancing at him, though he also had an uncertain look in his eye.

(Ace didn’t know about Sabo’s family. He didn’t ask.

Much like Sabo didn’t ask him about his own home life or why he lived with bandits.

Sabo was one of the few people who knew the truth of his heritage, of the truth about Ace's father.

Ace had reluctantly told him of it, though he can't remember exactly how they ended up in that situation. What he did recall was that Sabo didn't react with anger or spite or anything that Ace was used to hearing when anyone was asked about the concept of Gold Roger having a son.

Instead, Sabo seemed to visibly restrain himself from asking any more questions that Ace was willing to answer and instead asked if Ace wanted to beat up the group of kids that talked badly of them earlier that day.

Ace was grateful for that.)

Ace could almost call them family, though he never really had one to be truly sure if it was the right thing to call the bond between them and the feelings that were bound to it.

His mother was dead, his father was a monster to the rest of the world, and Garp wasn’t really related to him and wasn’t really around most of the time, so Ace didn’t know family as more than something maybe he was better off not knowing in the first place.

But again, he couldn’t just keep calling Sabo and Luffy just his friends either. It just didn't fit anymore.

So maybe not exactly family, because he didn’t get to choose his family and the family he's had only brought him frustration and heartbreak and he barely even knew them.

So maybe something else.

Something similar to it.

And suddenly Ace remembered something.

A memory from a time that he didn't know what it meant by being the son of Gol D. Roger.

“ _It’s a kind of ceremony, see? To forge a bond that goes beyond friendship, beyond family! A pact of brotherhood between pirates that promises that you’ll protect each other and support one another no matter what squalls come your way,_ ” the drunkard laughed, taking a heavy swig next to a younger Ace who had asked about pirates when the bandits and Garp didn’t give him any of the answers that he was looking for. “ _It’s all very serious. You don’t just exchange cups of sake with just anyone! These pacts are for life, and even after death._ ”

It hit him like a blow to the stomach. He had nearly forgotten about it between the rage and shame that sat in his gut, weighing as heavily as stone.

He couldn’t remember more about what the old man had said, but running the words back in his head again, he looked back at Luffy then at Sabo, who looked at him with a questioning expression, eyes sharp as if trying to figure out what had suddenly come to his mind.

“Maybe not like family then,” Ace finally said, flashing Sabo a grin when the other boy was about to open his mouth to ask. “More like brothers.”

“Brothers?” Sabo asked, pushing himself up eyes wide before he seemed to let the concept bounce around in his head. Something seemed to click, and he started to nod slowly, a fond smile beginning to form on his face. “Huh. Yeah…I kind of like the sound of that! Never had brothers before.”

“Yeah!” Luffy mumbled before he turned his head and muttered something about a plate of meat into his pillow before he fell back to snoring.

Ace and Sabo stared at him in surprise, before they laughed together, trying to calm down as they chuckled.

“Guess it’s decided then!” Sabo grinned, reaching over to gently brush Luffy’s hair affectionately.

“Not yet,” Ace said a plan beginning to form in his mind as he crossed his arms. “I have to do something first. We have to do this right.”

“Right?”

“It’s important,” Ace simply said, before adding with a crooked smile at the question forming on Sabo’s mouth. “You’ll have to wait until tomorrow. It’s gonna be special.”

Sabo raised his hands, giving him a resigned grin. “Alright, alright. Well, I guess that means that we should head in then. I'm pretty beat,” he yawned, giving Ace a gentle punch on the shoulder. "Night, Ace."

And with that, he flopped back and Ace followed suit though feigning to go to sleep.

Ace waited for Sabo's breathing to match with Luffy's, rising up again to stare at both of his frie—no, soon-to-be brothers fast asleep. Nodding to himself, he carefully wriggled and pushed his way out of Luffy’s grasp, and made his way to the door.

Though, suddenly, he felt a hand clasp around his ankle and tugging him back.

He looked back, spying Luffy's hand holding onto him. Carefully, he pried it off, quickly handing a pillow when it tried to grab him again and watched as Luffy pulled it to his side.

Ace just felt too energized to sleep just yet, trying to remember more about the whole brotherhood pact concept but came up empty since it didn't feel important at the time. It was just really interesting.

But as he made his way down to the bottom of the ladder silently, mindful of the which boards on the floor would creak beneath his weight, he realized that it didn’t really matter if he didn’t know how the ceremony worked.

All they needed were cups to drink from, and a bottle of sake, right?

Ace was sure that Dadan has plenty of that to spare in her cupboard.

Tomorrow was gonna be a day to remember.

 

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They managed to get through the Gray Terminal and into Goa without a hitch, draped with a rough-looking cloak that hid them from prying eyes.

It was something that Sabo fashioned himself from a couple of worn curtains that the bandits were going to throw out since they couldn’t salvage it any longer. It just had too many holes on them that it looked like it was personally ripped apart by a jungle lord.

They were just better off just stealing, or maybe buying new ones, and were more than happy to give it to Sabo when he asked, if albeit a little confused as to why.

Sabo grinned at him and Luffy this morning when he laid the torn fabrics on the grass, in a clearing at Middle Forest. He fused them together. The two lights turning to one as he grabbed the edge of its silhouette and shook it, unfurling into a whole and intact piece of fabric.

It almost looked good as new, if you looked past the dust and dirt. The original colours of the two curtains seemed to have blended, making the finished material a sort of dark brown.

Ace and Luffy had tilted their heads at it, a little confused about what the point was before Sabo rolled his eyes and asked for Luffy to jump onto his shoulders, and for Ace to sit on top of Luffy’s before he handed over the fused fabric and Ace, finally understanding the plan, draped it over his shoulders.

The pirates were still on the lookout for them, and it wouldn't do for them to get ambushed and needing to fight off a whole bunch of pirates before they got past the inspection gate.

“Hey, why do I have to be in the middle?!” Luffy groaned, hunching over and caused their stacked form to wobble more.

“Oi Luffy! Careful!” Sabo called, staggering a little.

“If you do, I’ll take you guys somewhere to eat ramen after we sell the crocodile skins.”

“Food!” Ace grinned when he felt their structure stabilize again, and had carefully directed them through the trash hills of Gray Terminal, as he tried not to glance around too much to be suspicious as the walls of Goa drew closer.

“Huh? Ramen? What’s that?” Sabo piped up, shifting Luffy’s legs a little to something much more comfortable.

“Just wait! It’s really good, I promise!”

“Ace! When are we getting there? I’m hungry!”

“Shh! We’re coming up to the gates.”

However, just because they got past Gray Terminal, didn’t mean they were out of danger just yet. They were still in Edge Town after all.

And soon enough, they watched a bunch of thugs slunk around them, block the back and in front of them, armed with pipes of their own as they chuckled menacingly. Like they thought they had them cornered.

“Hey! You came from Trash Mountain, didn’t you?”

“What’s your cargo? Show it to me!”

Some things just never change.

“Shut up, punks!”

It was priceless to see the looks on their faces as Sabo pulled the cloak away with a flourish and revealed all three of them underneath it. Ace handing over Sabo's pipe as surprise kept the thugs from reacting in time.

But the looks of shock and horror on their faces, when the punks realized just who they tried to mug just took the cake as he, Sabo and Luffy jumped into action, making quick work of them before they could retaliate or even yell for help.

Ace took a moment to grin to himself, surveying the sprawled and groaning forms of the punks on the ground, then at Sabo and Luffy who were chatting excitedly behind him and checking on the crocodile skins, which they were pulling on a cart that seemed to have been damaged.

But Sabo seemed to have already fixed it and gave him a thumbs up.

With an indulgent huff, he spied where the cloak had disappeared to and pulled it up.

“Alright, come on! I promised you guys lunch, remember?" Ace called, tapping his pipe against his shoulder. "We’re almost at the markets, so we can ditch the skins and head off to eat!”

"Yeah!"

 

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Ace never really liked to pry in other people’s pasts.

He, of all people, knew that not everyone was happy about it, and Sabo himself had avoided in asking more details than Ace was willing to give the last time they talked about his own family life.

And Sabo had always been a kind of an oddball, and while Ace wouldn't want to push, it was just getting harder and harder not to notice.

Case and point, the whole pocket-watch-kind-of-thing that Sabo whipped out when they were about to be turned away at the door of the ramen shop Ace wanted to have them eat at.

The man had a scowl on his face, an expression that Ace could recognize as disgust when the guy’s eyes gave them a quick look over and made a displeased hum.

He told them, with barely reigned in scorn and a polite smile on his face, that his establishment wasn’t willing to serve a trash bum and they should get lost. And Ace would have smacked him over the head before he felt someone move below him, catching his attention.

Ace saw the gleam of gold and silver, and the man immediately changed his tune when he saw it, eyes growing as big as saucers that Ace had to kick Luffy to shush him, or else their cover would be blown by his laughter and they’d never get their lunch.

He started to bow and apologize, and Sabo had asked for a VIP Suite and the man gladly chauffeured them to one on the fourth floor.

Besides whispering of how it was handy, Ace staved off any more questions he wanted to ask Sabo about it. Because it was lunchtime and they can wrangle a proper answer out of him later.

Though then again, it wasn’t the first time Ace saw it. He knew Sabo had it. But he didn’t ask more than where the other boy got it and why he didn’t throw it in with the rest of their treasures.

It was pretty clear that it was well-made, though Ace wasn’t sure how much it would cost.

Sabo only replied with a vague, “I got from my dad.”

And Ace didn’t have to be a genius to know that Sabo didn’t want to say any more about the matter.

That was fine by him.

But then a strange and pompous looking man, that was definitely some kind of noble, actually recognized and called out Sabo’s name when the three of them made their way out of the restaurant.

And Ace didn’t miss the sweat that broke out on Sabo’s face as his expression shifted to the rare look of frustration and fear when he glanced back for a moment (rare in the sense that it wasn’t caused by any stupid decision on their part, or was in the middle of a fight of some kind that they tend to have), and just took off running at full speed.

He didn’t stop when they dashed through Edge Town, past Trash Mountain, not even when they got to Middle Forest and were back in the wilds of Mt. Corvo.

It was almost like Sabo was running for his life, eyes locked straight ahead and unable to hear anything besides the blood roaring into his ears.

Ace didn’t have any trouble to keep up with the other boy’s speed, though he glanced back worriedly at Luffy behind him, who was beginning to lag back more and more.

“Oi!” Ace called ahead.

No response.

“Oi Sabo!”

Sabo kept running.

“Oi Sabo! Slow down!”

With another lack of response, Ace scowled and quickly pushed his legs to go faster, catching up with the other boy easily enough and reached over to smack Sabo at the back of the head with his free hand.

“Hey! What was that for?!” Sabo grumbled after he managed to barely catch himself before he fell flat on his face. He shook his head, like he was shaking off water clinging to his hair and finally started to slow down.

“Count yourself lucky that I didn’t use this,” Ace said, raising his pipe as his eyes shrunk into slits.

“Thanks, I’m so grateful,” Sabo drolled sarcastically with a roll of his eyes, before glancing back. “Oh, where’s Luffy?”

Ace looked back and groaned, turning on his heel to double back the way they came. “Well, we wouldn’t have lost him if you’d slowed down like I told you too!”

“You didn’t say anything!”

"I did! You just didn't hear me!" Ace griped, finally catching the distant sounds of waves, before catching the sound of heavy panting. Huh, he didn’t realize they ran far enough to get this close to the ocean. “Come on. I think I hear him.”

The trees started to thin as they arrived at the cliff overlooking the ocean as it glimmered like a jewel in the afternoon sun.

Luffy was flopped on the ground between the roots of some of the trees, trying to catch his breath.

“There you are!” Sabo sighed in relief, walking over to plop himself next to Luffy. “How’d you even get here?”

“You guys ran so fast! I tried to catch up but I lost track and ended up here, and I got tired so I laid down.”

Sabo glanced at Ace, subtly wincing at the intense look in his eyes before he ducked his head and smiled at Luffy.

“Ah sorry about that,” Sabo said, hand going up to grasp the back of his neck as he looked away, almost looking embarrassed. “Forgot you can't run as fast as we can.”

“Did it have something to do with the guy in the city earlier?”

Sabo froze for only half a moment, which was all Ace needed to know before the other boy blinked back to focus and gave Ace his usual smirk, feigning confusion.

Ace only kept frowning, raising an eyebrow in response. “Well? Did it?”

"Oh yeah! There was a weird guy that was calling your name!" Luffy sat up, turning to Sabo as well. "Did you know him?

“No! Of course not!” Sabo said, leaning back to rest on his arms, trying to be as casual as can be, though his shoulders were tense and Ace could spy that his hands were gripping the grass next to him.

“Yeah, right!” Ace growled. “He obviously knew you! How’d he even know your name if he didn’t?”

“I told you! He just mistook me for someone else!”

“That’s a terrible excuse, and you know it! There’s not a lot of people named Sabo around here.”

“There’s plenty of people named Sabo!”

“I dunno,” Luffy mused, having gotten up from his spot and made his way to stand next to Ace, head tilted to the side. “Sabo’s a pretty weird name.”

“Not as weird as Luffy!”

“You’re hiding something,” Ace said definitively before either of them could say anything more. “So, spill.”

Sabo crossed his arms, looking annoyed. “What’s your problem?! I’m not hiding anything!”

“Really?” Luffy said surprised, but Ace knew better.

“You are so! Just come clean!” Sabo winced but seemed to double down, and tightened his arms around him. So obviously hiding something that even Luffy could tell.

Ace rolled his eyes, leaning down to me face to face with Sabo as Luffy followed suit, cheeks pressing against each other. “You sure you want to have secrets between us?”

Sabo opened his mouth before slowly closing it with an audible click, tightened his lips, eyes trying to look everywhere else instead of Ace's and Luffy’s looming faces.

“Talk.”

But when that didn't work, Ace and Luffy’s hands shot out to grab Sabo’s throat and start to choke him. Persuasion was never really their strongest suit.

“TALK OR WE’LL BEAT IT OUT OF YOU!”

“AGH! AHH FINE! I’LL TALK! I’LL TALK!”

Immediately they let go of his neck, stepping back to give him space, and Sabo wheezed in precious air as he caught his breath, coughing a little.

He shot them a glare, but both of them just crossed their arms and watched him expectantly. As the silence stretched on, Ace huffed and gently patted his pipe against his palm to remind him.

Sabo sighed letting the shadow of his top hat to slide over his eyes.

“I…” Sabo began, voice shaky and uncertain in a way that it rarely was. “I’m actually...I'm a son of a noble.”

Out of all the things that Ace had expected to hear, that was the last thing he expected for him to say.

“Whaaat?! You’re the son of a noble?”

“Who is?” Luffy asked, tilting his head to again to the other side.

“I am!” Sabo yelled.

“So?” Ace and Luffy picked their noses from the confirmation. _That was what all the fuss is about?_

“YOU WANTED TO KNOW!” Sabo growled, before giving an angry huff and shuffled to lean his back against the tree behind him, crossing his arms. “Both my parents are still alive. I’m not an orphan. I wasn’t even born on Trash Mountain.” He sighed, seeming to curl up into himself even more. “That guy back there…was actually, my father. I’m...I'm really sorry I lied to you guys about it.”

“Well, you apologized so you’re okay by me!” Luffy said, nodding with an easy smile. “I forgive you!”

Ace huffed, turning on his heel and walked off towards the ocean as he shook his head, trying to wrap his mind around the whole thing.

Maybe Luffy didn’t know what being a noble actually meant. Actually, Ace wasn’t sure that Luffy even went into the Goa Kingdom until today, so it was probably safe to assume that he didn’t.

Besides, it wasn’t something that Luffy would care to learn or think about, all things considered.

“I don’t get it,” Ace finally said, confusion winning out of the mess of thoughts and feelings in his mind.

Because nobles were always envied by everyone from Trash Mountain to Edge Town. People would always tout that they hated them, but Ace knew it was just a veil to cover the fact that most were jealous of the simple fact that the nobles had everything they wanted within arm's reach. If they asked for something, they’d get it immediately, usually handed to them on a silver platter. Unlike pretty much everyone else who would have to work for it.

Ace wasn’t part of the demographic who wished to be nobles. He could understand the appeal, sure. But to him, it just sounded boring. He’d probably hate every moment of it.

Still.

It was a whole lot safer than their lives right now, always on the run, always fighting to just survive the next day.

“Why would you do it?” Ace turned to face Sabo, staring at his face and meeting with Sabo’s wide blue eyes. “Why would a noble run off to live at Trash Mountain?”

There was something about the look that Sabo gave him that provided him with the answer. Something that was part pained, and part sad that Ace felt a moment of guilt for having asked before Sabo broke away from his gaze.

“All they care about is their wealth and status,” Sabo said, his voice wobbling a little, before he seemed to realize it and took a deep breath to steady it before continuing. “If I can’t marry a girl from the royal family, I’m no better than trash! They forced me to study and take lessons every single day, and my parents end up fighting if I couldn’t learn fast enough. I was just a nuisance in that house.” He tilted his head down, the rim of his hat hiding his eyes again. “I may not be an orphan…” His hands curled into fists. “But I’ve always been alone.”

A heavy blanket of silence pressed over them. The words settling over them as Ace and Luffy stared at him with wide eyes.

“The nobles look down on the Gray Terminal,” Sabo said, before locking eyes with both of them again, something desperate burning in his own, “But it’s definitely still better than living in High Town where I have my whole life planned out for me!”

 _Where I’m not free_ , was left unsaid, not that it needed to be.

They could hear it loud and clear.

“So that’s how it was,” Ace said, the whole secret finally coming to light.

It explained a lot. A whole lot.

No wonder why Sabo was so afraid, so reluctant to say anything about his past. Ace would run away too if his life was like that. It was no way to live.

Sabo shook himself as if shaking off the thoughts and oppressive memories that the conversation stirred up, leaping to his feet with a burning light in his eyes that he directed to them. A more determined smile gracing his face.

“Ace! Luffy!” Sabo yelled, hands curled into fists as he raised it and shifted his body to something like a fighting stance. Almost as if he was challenging them. “Let’s go out to sea someday! Let’s get out of this country! So we can be free!” His smile grew larger, the edges of it shaking because unlike Luffy, he wasn’t made of rubber and his smile didn’t stretch to his whole face, but it was a close approximation to it as his face tried to accommodate it. “I want to see the world and write a book about it! Besides, navigation is one of the only things I liked to study! So let’s get stronger and become pirates!”

His resolve poured outward and spilt into Ace and Luffy, and they returned his smile with one of their own.

“You don’t have to convince me!” Ace laughed, before turning to face the sea, to the world, as he felt his own dreams and resolve bubble up to the surface. He slammed the butt of the pipe on the group, taking a deep breath. “I’m gonna be a pirate and win, win, win! I’ll be famous all over the world! I’ll prove my life’s worth something!” Because so many people wanted him dead, but, “No matter how many people in the world don’t approve of me, no matter how many hate me, I’m gonna become a great pirate and show them all!”

He heaved, letting his proclamation get carried over by the ocean winds. The crashing waves filling the space and silence before he tightened his grip on his pipe.

“I won’t run away from anyone! I won’t lose to anyone!” He yelled, eyes drifting to the side to take a glance behind him and gave a decisive nod before turning back to face the world. “I don’t care if they call me a villain! I’ll make the whole world know my name!”

“Okay, then,” Luffy laughed, and Ace heard him tromping forward to the edge, raising his fists to the sky, his grin bright as the sun, “I WANT TO BECOME PIRATE KING!”

Ace took a moment to blink for a few seconds. Trying to wrap his mind around the title that he detested for so long, and attempting to connect it to Luffy as he laughed, carefree and joyous as he always was.

“I can’t believe you actually said that,” Ace finally muttered, before letting out a sigh.

“You’re funny, Luffy!” Sabo laughed uncontrollably, hand gripping onto Ace’s shoulder as he tried to keep himself from bowling over. Of course Luffy didn't know, so, of course, Sabo found the whole thing hilarious. Ace was almost tempted to whack him with his pipe. “I can’t wait to see what you’ll be like in the future!”

Though suddenly he seemed to calm down, and Ace gave Sabo a wary look from the sudden shift. Sabo seemed to be thinking of something, as he walked over to where he dropped his pipe and swiped it. He twirled it around before resting it against his shoulder and eventually tapping the pipe against it, humming thoughtfully.

“But isn’t it bad that we all want to be captains?”

Ace tilted his head, staring at Sabo with a bewildered expression. “That’s something I didn’t expect,” he said, playing the conversation back as he crossed his arms. “I thought you wanted to be the navigator of my ship.”

Sabo was about to reply when Luffy piped up. “Why don’t you guys just join my crew?”

“Why would we?” Ace asked, giving him a suspicious look.

“Because it’ll be fun!” He puffed up his cheeks. "Come on! Join my crew!

“No way!” Ace said, carefully maneuvering his pipe to rest against his shoulder as he started to walk back into the forest. “Maybe ask me again when you’ve finally beaten me fifty times in a row!”

And Luffy whined as he followed after him. Sabo chuckled as he trailed after them into the cool shade of the forest, the discussion of pirates and crewmates and captains filling the air, as Ace guided them through the undergrowth, eyes carefully looking for a familiar landmark.

The place that he chose last night.

It felt fitting to do it now, with all that’s happened, with all their secrets and their dreams all laid out between all of them for only their eyes and ears. For all the things that they’ve never really talked about to anyone else before.

And it just felt right to mark it with something special.

Like a promise.

A pact.

Spying the tree that had fallen over, he walked closer to make sure that he could see the 'x' he carved against the bark above the patch of bushes that covered the clearing beyond it. He pushed past the bushes and shrubs, finally standing at the edge of the clearing, delighted to see that the red cups were still sitting on the stump in the middle. Good.

He wasn’t able to check since he snuck out last night to set it all up, not willing to reveal that he had anything planned for the day. He was glad that he didn’t have to run back to get new ones from the hut.

The dappled sunlight streaming through the gaps in the canopy fell across the clearing and the moss-covered stump. It looked a lot prettier in the afternoon sun.

Ace nodded happily as he finally walked in and let the other two follow him to set sights on the odd set up in front of them.

“Huh? Ace? This isn’t the training clearing,” Luffy asked, walking over to investigate the center. “What’s this? Mystery cups?”

Sabo took in the scene and looked at Ace, smiling before giving him a wink. Ace rolled his eyes, and gently pushed him where Luffy was watching them and he ducked back through the bushes, back to one of the trees nearby. He stood on his tippy toes, looking into a hollow that he stashed the bottle of sake from Dadan’s cabinet.

He's lived with the bandits long enough to know that the bottle was rarely touched, except for special occasions. Or so Dadan said. Though it’s been there for nearly as long as Ace had lived with them, so he guessed that nothing special had arisen yet to deem it as a perfect time to pop it open.

At least until now.

“We’ll decide our future in the future,” Ace said, stepping back into the clearing to where Sabo and Luffy were waiting for him, and placed the bottle on the stump for all to see.

“Maybe we’ll all go to sea separately,” Sabo suggested, giving Ace and Luffy a meaningful look. Ace nodded, before spying Luffy's face, watching the other boy’s thoughts flicker through his face. Always an open book.

He shifted from various stages of confusion before recognition broke through the fog.

“Hey! You stole Dadan’s bottle, didn’t you?”

Ace didn’t reply besides a conspiratorial smile. He pulled off the cork as met with each of their gazes for a couple of beats.

“You know about this?” Ace started, aware that he had both of Luffy’s and Sabo’s keen attention. Even the forest seemed silent, as if hanging onto each of his words. He poured the sake into the cups, careful not to spill any of it. “If you exchange cups, it makes you brothers.”

“Brothers?” Luffy exclaimed, starting to bounce excitedly on his heels. "Really?"

Ace grinned at him, nodding as he placed the bottle back on the stump-table, and took a cup for himself, watching as the others did the same.

“When we become pirates, we might not be on the same ship together…but no matter what, we’ll always be brothers!” Ace felt the feeling of his resolve from earlier on the cliff bubble up to the surface once more. The feeling seeped into his chest, up his throat, slipping to settle between his words. “No matter where we are or what we do, this bond will never be broken.” He raised his cup, the light caught and reflected on the rims, making it gleam like a ruby. “Starting today, we’re brothers!”

And with a clink and a resounding cry of affirmation, they drank together.

Before they ended up coughing from the taste, and the feeling of it burning down their throat, though all of them refused to spit any of it out as they finished their cups.

They shuddered, expressions of disgust mirrored on each other’s faces as they looked at one another. Laughter spilled out of their lips as they grinned at each other uncontrollably.

And Ace knew that no matter how their future would end up looking. No matter all the people who hated him. Within this bubble of sunlight and warmth and brotherhood, none of that mattered, because at the moment, there was nowhere else he’d rather be than by his brothers’ sides. 


End file.
